World Mental Health Day 2021: Malaysian context

Win Li

3 years ago

By Low Win Li

World Mental Health Day 2021: Malaysian context

For World Mental Health Day 2021, this year’s theme is ‘Mental Health in an Unequal World’. This theme was chosen by the World Federation for Mental Health based on their survey of the accessibility of mental health services across countries around the world. Access to mental health services remains unequal, people in low- and middle-income countries lack access to such services while access in high income countries is not much better. The budget (and attention) set towards mental health resources in comparison to the overall health budget also contributes to the treatment gap. Beyond equality, some individuals and populations need greater intensity of mental health promotion, prevention, and treatment efforts because of the constellation of adversities, social marginalisation, and burden of ill health they experience.

For this year, the World Health Organization (WHO) shared the slogan “Mental health care for all: let’s make it a reality.” The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the mental health of people worldwide, regardless of their background or status. During the World Health Assembly in May 2021, it was reported that governments worldwide recognized the need to increase quality mental health services at all levels. On the other hand, WHO’s Mental Health Atlas 2020, which compiles data from 171 countries, reports that there has not been much improvements in the scale-up of quality mental health services that aligns with the needs of the public. Following this report, WHO is focused on meeting the goals set out in their Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2030 that can be accessed here.

The question that is brought up this World Mental Health Day is: How can this gap be addressed so that members of the public are able to enjoy good mental health?

October 2021: What now, Malaysia?

What is the state of mental health accessibility in Malaysia?

It can be broken down into these categories:

Addressing stigma and discrimination,
Awareness and education, and
Accessibility to mental health care

Addressing stigma and discrimination

From January to mid-June 2021, it was recorded that 89.4% of calls to helplines (e.g. managed by the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development) were from individuals seeking emotional and psychological support. In the first half of 2021 alone, police recorded 468 suicide cases – in comparison to the annual total of 631 cases in 2020 and 609 in 2019. Though suicide cases pre-pandemic was already a growing issue, the numbers will continue to increase if the distress of the people are not addressed.

In line with World Suicide Prevention Day (falls annually on 10 September), Dr Noor Hisham urged the public to learn to address the stigma surrounding suicidal behaviour. In his statement, he also shared on the need to amend or repeal Section 309 of the Penal Code (the section of the law that deems attempted suicide as a criminal offence, punished either by imprisonment or a fine or both). In an opinion piece, Member of Parliament Kelvin Yii Lee Wuen wrote that if the government intends to repeal this law, they will need to have a clear timeline and a concrete plan in place to handle it.

Awareness and education: Abolishing Section 309 of the Penal Code

As of 7th October 2021, it was announced that Malaysia’s Home Ministry (KDN) and the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) agreed to abolish Section 309 of the Penal Code. Speaking to the Dewan Rakyat (Malaysia’s lower house of Parliament), Deputy Health Minister Aaron Ago Dagang said, “The matter will be brought to the Cabinet for discussion on the amendment to ensure those who attempt suicide will not be charged anymore.” The Health Ministry’s intention to commit towards improving public mental health was also shared.

Though the action of repealing Section 309 is a step forward for Malaysia, the follow-up question arises: Are there sufficient resources in place to accommodate providing mental health services to those who are struggling?

Accessibility to mental health care

Malaysian Mental Health Association (MMHA) president Professor Datuk Dr Andrew Mohanraj recommended that the government should increase access to counselling services and the availability of sufficient resources to match. According to the Malaysian Medics International (MMI), Malaysia only has an average of 1.27 psychiatrists per 100,000 population.

One of the long-term strategies put forth by the Health Ministry is the introduction of the National Mental Health Strategic Plan (2020 – 2025). This plan will officially launch on October 10th, in time for World Mental Health Day this year. Time will tell if the plan will lead to actual improvements in the Malaysian mental health care system.