Government has completely neglected the mental health of Maltese and Gozitans – PN

The mental health sector has been “completely abandoned by the Labour Government,” according to former Nationalist Party leader Adrian Delia, PN MP Ian Vassallo and PN MEP candidate Norma Camilleri.

During a press conference on Monday, they said that the country’s mental health sector has been abandoned to such an extent that the government has abandoned electoral promises and made numerous U-turns.

In this regard, they referred to the long-promised mental health hospital and how this project supposedly had a location found for it four months ago before the government opted to revert to the idea of having a psychiatric ward instead.

They also mentioned the annual increase in the number of people seeking mental health support to highlight the importance of this issue. The speakers also said that they were worried by the number of suicides committed by young teenagers before adding that people are not receiving enough help, and instead are seeing “only never-ending waiting lists and wards at Mount Carmel Hospital that have been closed for several years.”

The two speakers continued to express the Nationalist Party’s concern about the recent report that uncovered that Maltese and Gozitan youths are the unhappiest youths in the entire European Union.

Putting these findings into the national context, the two politicians stated that “the Labour Government continues to lower the level of mental health care,” that the government had given €400 million to Vitals and Steward instead of investing the money in public health, and that the number of new medicines is not increasing, despite promises from numerous previous budgets.

They followed up on this by saying that because of Robert Abela’s government abandonment of the sector, there are now more than 40,000 people who are seeking help in what can be considered as a “national emergency.” They also criticised the lack of consultation on the subject with different entities.

The party said that many factors affect one’s mental health, such as traffic and the lack of green spaces, and it is because of these reasons that we, as a country, must address everything that affects mental health.

The Nationalist Party therefore stated that it has already proposed the following proposals to address this issue: the construction of a new mental health hospital near Mater Dei Hospital and for the renovation works at Mount Carmel Hospital to continue, being the two primary measures.

The party also proposed that mental health care is provided with the same level of treatment that other conditions are treated, for investments to be made into the medicinal formulary by adding new medicines that are already existent on the market that offer a better level of care, and for an education plan to combat mental health stigmas to be created.

They said that the party would also implement an awareness programme to be introduced in different levels of the education system on how to recognize and seek help, mental health treatments integrated in clinics and hospitals to overcome stigmas, and carry out an assessment programme for all students and workers to identify if any of these persons are living with any condition related to mental health.

Finally, the PN proposed investment in the human resources of clinics and hospitals, that voluntary organisations are supported in their efforts to invest in this sector, to strengthen the methods by which people in crisis can immediately seek help via telephone, online, or in-person, and to introduce a “safe spaces concept” in large/public buildings for when one feels uncomfortable or requires some time alone without distraction.

Responding to the press conference with their own statement, the Health Ministry said that the PN first says that a “mature and serious” debate is needed on this sector, but then contradicts that desire through its statements.

The ministry said that the press conference was reacting to the updated plans which were recently announced by new Health Minister Jo Etienne Abela, and said that the criticism is “confusing and contradictory.”

The Ministry noted the “unjust” criticism towards professionals working in the sector, and noted that both the population and professionals are today more conscious and aware about mental health issues, which results in an always increasing rate of diagnoses.

“While the Opposition speaks about stigma, at the same time it speaks against the government’s strategy to reduce stigma,” the Ministry said, noting that one such way of doing so is through amalgamating services for those with acute psychiatric illnesses within Mater Dei Hospital.

The ward that the PN referred to, the Ministry said, will in fact be a project which will create 110 beds for this aim, and the amalgamation into Mater Dei Hospital was a decision taken after discussions with experts and will cost €35 million to fulfil.

Mount Carmel Hospital will be reserved for separate sections of chronic illnesses and psycho-geriatric illnesses, and major renovation works will be done to reach this end, the Ministry said.

The Ministry added that €25 million will be invested in new psychiatric medicines, and said that this will be as important as service within the community, which will continue to be protected and safeguarded.