NEW DELHI – In a appalling revelation, it was learned that 1 out of 5 children has a mental health problem in developing countries such as India and only 1 in 50 gets the treatment in the such nations. Findings from the papers of Lancet Series on Global Mental Health reveal that the treatment ratio is 1:3 in Western countries while its 1:50 in India.
Mental health problems affect 10-20 percent of children and adolescents worldwide. Neuropsychiatric disorders are a leading cause of health-related problems for young people and it accounts for 15?30 percent of the disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) lost during the first three decades of life. Nearly 90 percent of world’s 2.2 billion children and adolescents who constitute almost a third of world?s population live in low-income and middle-income countries (LMIC). They also make up to 50 percent of the population in those countries.
The overall shortage of about 2.39 lakh mental health workers, which is about 17.3 workers per one lakh population in low-income countries and 14.9 per lakh population in middle-income countries, is noted as the major reason behind this.
