This archive report was first published on 1 September 2019.
Published on September 1, 2019, by Lukoye Atwoli, Associate Professor of Psychiatry and former Dean, Moi University School of Medicine.
As the world grapples with the growing burden of mental illness, Africa is particularly vulnerable. The continent needs to develop evidence-based interventions that address the unique mental health challenges it faces.
During a recent meeting with mental health experts in Lisbon, Portugal, it became clear that Africa needs to do more to understand the burden of specific mental disorders on the continent. This requires a concerted effort to develop interventions that are tailored to the needs of African people.
One of the major challenges facing Africa is the tendency to rely on short-term solutions, such as training laypersons to provide mental health services. While this approach may seem appealing, it is often based on a scarcity mentality and lacks evidence to support its effectiveness.
Instead of relying on task-shifting or task-sharing, Africa needs to focus on developing interventions that are grounded in established evidence. This requires a shift in thinking, from prioritizing financial considerations to prioritizing the needs of the people.
As Professor Atwoli notes, 'we must move away from this kind of thinking, and begin to plan using established evidence on interventions that work to improve our people's mental health, and health in general.'
