Addressing mental health needs

Dr Mohanraj and Ng are committed to making mental health services more accessible to those in need.

RECENTLY, a group of participants at a leadership workshop organised by the Selangor Youth Community (SAY) conducted an online forum on mental health.

This was indeed apt given the increase in mental health issues amongst the masses in recent times.

Given this situation, the creation and registration of the Selangor Mental Health Association was a timely calling.

Reaching out at the community level

Its pro-tem president Datuk Dr Andrew Mohanraj said the Selangor Mental Health Association (SMHA) was set up to address mental health needs at the community level and to complement mental health services by the public sector services.

“The SMHA is planning to reach to reach out to community leaders through its suicide prevention programme called ‘A Conversation on Suicide’.

“We will also be reaching out to people who have loved ones with mental health issues.

“Caregivers of those with chronic mental illness are often a forgotten lot,’’ said Dr Mohanraj.

He added that SMHA hoped to organise caregiver support groups in several pockets in the state, focusing also on youth resilience, particularly among those living in rural areas.

“In order to be closely linked to the state, the SMHA’s pro-tem committee had invited the Selangor Speaker’s office to be its patron and the invitation was accepted by Speaker YB Ng Suee Lim,” said Dr Mohanraj.

He added that the SMHA was also hoping to have a royal patron and would be seeking advice on how to go about it soon.

Among those sitting on the SMHA management committee is former Selangor Health Department director Datin Dr Ang Kim Teng.

Timely initiative

Meanwhile, Ng said it was timely for the SMHA to be conceptualised and launched given the need to address mental health issues in the country.

“I hope that with the formation of the SMHA, we will be able to help and guide those who are in need of support and guidance,” he added.

Early intervention

According to Ng, there are many people who are initially unaware that they or their loved ones are experiencing mental health issues.

Hence, their condition is more often than not neglected until it reaches a serious stage, he pointed out.

“If we are able to help these people detect such mental health issues early, we can provide the necessary help and support to ensure that their quality of life is maintained whilst they undergo the necessary treatment and counselling sessions,” said Ng.

He added that once the SMHA gained momentum, it would be able to provide timely and critical support to everyone who needs help to address mental health issues.

The Selangor state government had also recently launched the Selangor Mental Health Programme (Sehat) to address the nationwide increase in the number of people facing mental health issues.