92% people with mental illness go untreated: Minister tells parliament
Bangladesh has only 1.17 mental health workers for every 100,000 people
Highlights
- Only 1.17 mental health workers per 100,000
- Just 350 public-sector psychiatrists nationwide
- 16.8% adults suffer mental health conditions
- 12.6% children, adolescents have mental disorders
- Government expands services through WHO-backed initiatives
More than 92% of adults and children/adolescents living with mental disorders in Bangladesh receive no mental healthcare services, Health and Family Welfare Minister Sardar Md Sakhawat Hossain told parliament today (13 July).
Underscoring the country's severe mental healthcare crisis, the minister said Bangladesh has only 1.17 mental health workers for every 100,000 people.
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He disclosed the figures while responding to a question from Cumilla-9 MP Md Abul Kalam, tabled in the Jatiya Sangsad.
Citing the National Mental Health Survey 2018-19, he said around 16.8% of adults and 12.6% of children and adolescents in Bangladesh suffer from some form of mental health condition. However, more than 92% of those affected go untreated.
Referring to recent World Health Organization (WHO) data, the minister said mental disorders are rapidly emerging as one of the leading causes of disability worldwide. While cardiovascular diseases and cancer remain the leading causes of death, mental illness has become a major factor behind long-term disability and reduced productivity.
He said Bangladesh's mental healthcare capacity remains severely inadequate for its large population, with only about 350 registered psychiatrists in the public sector.
To address the gap, the minister said the government is strengthening mental health services through legal reforms, institutional expansion and primary healthcare integration.
He said the National Institute of Mental Health and Hospital in Dhaka and the Pabna Mental Hospital are serving as the country's two principal specialised mental healthcare institutions.
The government has also enacted the Mental Health Act, 2018, and is implementing the National Mental Health Strategic Plan and Action Plan (2020-2030), he added.
Under the World Health Organization's Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP), the Directorate General of Health Services is providing specialised training to primary-level physicians, nurses and health workers.
The programme is currently being implemented in 10 districts—Khulna, Jashore, Jhenaidah, Noakhali, Bandarban, Sylhet, Sherpur, Netrakona, Chapainawabganj and Kurigram.
The minister said the government is also implementing a suicide prevention programme in collaboration with the DGHS, the WHO and the National Institute of Mental Health and Hospital. The initiative is currently underway in Jashore, Jhenaidah, Sylhet and Chapainawabganj.
He added that Bangladesh is one of only nine countries selected to participate in the WHO's Special Initiative for Mental Health (SIMH).
