SA’s sick state of mental health

One-third of our population suffers from mental illnesses — and 75% of them will not receive treatment

A SPECIAL Sunday Times investigation has uncovered the shocking state of mental health in South Africa.

One third of all South Africans have mental illnesses — and 75% of them will not get any kind of help.

Juvenile mental patients who do receive treatment in state institutions risk being raped and housed in prison-like conditions.

At Gauteng’s Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto, the female psychiatric ward houses 55 women in a dormitory-like environment.

“You only have two nurses on duty and there’s little or no stimulation for these women. Now, if you’re struggling with depression, these conditions are not ideal,” said Dr Yusuf Moosa, head of clinical psychiatry at the University of the Witwatersrand.

More than 17 million people in South Africa are dealing with depression, substance abuse, anxiety, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia — illnesses that round out the top five mental health diagnoses, according to the Mental Health Federation of South Africa.

Despite the high number, the Department of Health annually spends only 4% — or R9.3-billion — of its budget to address the crisis.

This has prompted NGOs such as the South African Depression and Anxiety Group to refer to mental health as “the orphan” of the healthcare system.

The investigation uncovered other shocking details:

An overwhelming 48% of new mothers suffer from post-

Families are often advised to report the child for a crime, otherwise they can’t get them into a facility

natal depression;

The head of the government’s mental health services ascribes the meagre national health budget allocation to there being health problems that are more urgent, such as HIV/Aids — 43% of whom also have a mental disorder;

A widow is suing the state after her husband plunged 14 storeys to his death after being admitted to Addington Hospital on Durban’s beachfront;

There is a severe shortage of specialised state hospitals;

The mentally ill, particularly the young and the elderly, are sometimes rejected by their families;

There is a lack of support for nongovernmental organisations; and

There is a dearth of specialised state healthcare

We see a lot of children who are at end of the road and who don’t have any options available

professionals such as psychiatrists, psychologists and psychiatric nurses.

Only 1% of beds in psychiatric wards are reserved for children or adolescents, which results in a one-month wait for a place and leaves youngsters like 17-yearold “Joseph” in a “junior prison” such as Vikelwa Reform School in Ogies, Mpumalanga.

“I was rude to my parents. I didn’t want to go to school, so they sent me here,” said Joseph outside his room at Vikelwa.

This is where 380 boys get locked up, 15 to a room, behind a steel door at night, and where rape and assault with crudely manufactured weapons are said to be common.

Many suffer from conduct disorder, which often manifests in children being unruly or aggressive.

“This place was built to be a prison,” said one staff member.

Following an investigation by the South African Human Rights Commission, the facility is being closed down.

In line with the prison-like conditions, prison gangs have been formed with boys tattooing “26” or “28” on their bodies and conferring ranks on members.

“We have a severe lack of facilities for children suffering mental health problems,” said Professor Ann Skelton of the Centre for Child Law. “We see a lot of children who are at the end of the road and who don’t have any options available.

“Kids end up in the system because families can’t cope any longer. They’re often advised to report the child for a crime, otherwise they can’t get them into a facility.”

For adolescents and young men, 16 to 25 years of age is the “peak time” during which schizophrenia, attention-deficit