TUESDAY, October 10 was observed as World Mental Health Day and I must say that I’m disappointed about the lack of activities and events held across the country. A few NGOs did host small events to commemorate the occasion. However, I’ve seen most simply sharing flyers or useful information online. I understand that the work is not only done on a single day, but it would’ve been nice to see more sensitisation and informational sharing sessions for members of the public on mental health, the importance of speaking with professionals and resources available to help persons with mental challenges. The World Health Organization commemorates World Mental Health Day to raise awareness of mental health issues worldwide. The theme was “mental health is a universal right”.

This year’s theme is essential for Guyana’s way forward because of the state of our society. We must acknowledge the barriers people face regarding accessing mental health services. While mental health is a universal right, not every Guyanese have fair access to treatment. Think about the Indigenous population and how they get to access mental health care. In some communities, it is nonexistent; in others, the care is limited and of poor standard. How about poor families without the money or ability to have advanced treatment care for their loved ones? The treatment for mental health is not particularly specialised. Without the Mental Health Unit or the Psychiatric Hospital, most families won’t be able to access these services to begin with. They can’t afford second opinions from other private professionals because health care on a whole can be very out of pocket for some families.

Unfortunately, our culture influences our decisions regarding how we access mental health services. There’s a grave stigma attached to the places of work associated with mental health. Some people are offended if you even suggest they seek help from certain places because that’s for “mad people” only. Our inability as a society to see through these issues and implement better solutions is what makes us one step behind in our efforts to improve the services offered. It is a universal right, just as physical health care and should be implemented alongside all of the country’s physical health care policy plans.

This is why I was upset to see only one and two events about the observation about Mental Health Day. It was a missed opportunity, especially since the theme was one that directly affects us and our people. I expected better, especially from some of the biggest names working on mental health and its services in Guyana. It could’ve been a great opportunity to inform people on their options and listen to suggestions on the way forward. As the old people say, “You gotta beat the iron while it’s hot”. Unfortunately, mental health is more prevalent than we’d like to think or believe.

In the United States, it is estimated that 1 in 5 persons live with a mental illness of some sort. I’m sure Guyana’s numbers are just as staggering as this. I hope that every day something is improved in the service delivery for mental health. We’re already decades behind on the services and we can’t afford to always stay behind because as the world progresses—we’ll be left behind. As I’ve mentioned in previous column pieces, it makes no sense we aspire to be the next Dubai when we’ll simply be a rich country with rich people but with poor mental health. We’re focusing on the wrong riches.