CHILD MENTAL HEALTH IN FOCUS AS CASES RISE

The ministry has been carrying out drives to raise awareness about mental health issues

Nearly 5,000 children, up to age 11, have been treated in government institutions for mental health issues, according to the latest statistics from the Ministry of Health (MoH).

The annual 2016 report by the Ministry of Health detailed mental health concerns and total visits to psychiatric clinics at MoH institutions, and found that “there were 4,991 cases of children between the ages 0-11, of which 3,386 were girls and 1,605 were boys.”

Additionally, for ages 12-19 and 20-44, the total visits were 4,978 and 51,190, respectively. In all three ages groups, there were more cases of visits among women, than men. “Between the ages of 12-19, 2,513 were girls and 2,465 were boys, while there were 31,805 female cases, compared to 20,385 males between the ages of 20-44,” noted the report.

In 2016 there were 150 more cases, compared to 2015, in which total visitors reached 99,063. With regards to governorates, North Al Batinah saw the highest number of visits, with 23,938, followed by Muscat with 20,710. On the other hand, Al Buraimi reported only 21 cases.

The reason for visits included “mental and behavioural disorders due to drug or substance uses, delusional disorders, stress related disorders, mental retardation, and emotional disorders during childhood and adolescence,” MoH’s annual report revealed. The increase in the number of cases could be due to the change in society’s views regarding mental health, according to experts.