Mental Health In South Africa

The environment in South Africa has been characterised by a long history of abuse of human rights, repression, racial segregation, forced physical removal, pass laws, laws preventing interracial marriages, violence, alcohol related problems, malnutrition, and poverty (Kale, 1995). If environment is a major determinant of mental health, then the mental health of South Africans might be expected to be poorer than that of people elsewhere (Kale, 1995). The diverse racial and cultural population of South Africa poses its own challenges in the treatments of the mentally ill. Unfortunately we are faced with much bigger challenges such as excessive amounts of violence, discrimination and severe poverty – all of which are major contributing factors

Before we can consider the cultural challenges we face as the rainbow nation, we have to look at the mere availability of mental healthcare services. Despite the fact that one in three South Africans suffer from a mental illness, the Department of Health annually spends only 4% - or R9.3-billion - of its budget to address the crisis (Times Live, 2014). 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 (Time Live, 2014). Accurate assessment and diagnoses of mental illness is the first and most important step in treating the mentally ill. Often times, mental healthcare workers are so overworked, under staffed and under paid that there is no time or resources to accurately assess and diagnose a patient. South Africa needs more mental health workers. We have a need for professionally trained individuals who can help assess and accurately diagnose mental disorders. One reason for lack of mental healthcare professionals in South Africa may be attributed to the stigma surrounding mental health. Stigma associated with mental disorders can influence career choices resulting in fewer people choosing to work in the mental healthcare field (Ngui,

Though we have come a long way since the Apartheid era, the situation is still bad. This is concerning not only to patients and their families, but the greater South African economy, when you consider that mental health inequalities are strongly associated and embedded within the broader social and economic context (Ngui, 2010). Three of the issues contributing to the mental ill-health of South Africans are poverty, broken homes and high levels of violence. The vast majority of people in South Africa are poor. Poverty breeds ill mental health and unfortunately ill mental health also breeds poverty. Divorce is on the rise and many are still dying due to HIV and AIDS leaving our children affected by the trauma. South Africa is one of the biggest murder and rape capitals in the world, with the Eastern Cape scoring the highest of all. Many South Africans suffer from PTSD, Anxiety, Depression and Substance-Abuse such as alcoholism as a