Wa West Records 3,641 Mental Health Cases

The Wa West District has recorded a total of 3,641 mental health conditions from 2016 to the second quarter of 2019.
Mr Clifford Veng, the Wa West District Director of Health Services has announced.

He was speaking at a community Durbar on mental health at Wenchiau in the Wa West District organised by the Human Rights Advocacy Centre in collaboration with Mind Freedom Ghana.

The programme was on the theme: "Protecting the Wellbeing and Rights of Persons with Mental Disabilities".
Mr Veng said statistically the District recorded 608 cases of mental conditions in 2016, 734 in 2017, 1,840 cases in 2018 and 459 cases in the second quarter of 2019.

He said even though epilepsy/seizure was the leading cause of all mental health conditions recorded from 2016 to 2018 there were other factors such as schizophrenia, delusional disorders, depression, neurotic and mental disorders due to alcohol use, behavioral disorders, pregnancy-related disorders, mental disorders due to psychoactive use and other mental disorders not specified.

Mr Veng said the District Health Directorate with support from the District Assembly and other stake holders had carried out mental health activities, which included registration of people with mental illness on the NHIS, donation of animals, sewing and hairdressing machines for stable patients to learn trade and provision of psychiatric drugs for mental patients.