mental health and the government

7/23/2019 Mental Health and the Government

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Mental Health and the Government

Guidelines for contributions:

What is mental health in general?What role does the government play in the management of mental health?How is an individuals mental health aected by the programs of thegovernment?In theory what can governments do in resolving the problem of mentalhealth?

Mindset:In doing the research thin! about the potentials of the government toimprove or alleviate the state of mental health of its citi"ens# $he result ofresearch here should help us form our opinion on the potentials of House%ill &&'( as the governments primary arm in managing the countrys

mental health#

)esearch by: *drian +eric G# ,e-a:

The 1987 Philippine Constitution states on Article XIII, Section 11 that the "Stateshall adopt an integrated and comprehensive approach to health developmenthich shall endeavor to ma!e essential goods, health and other social services

availale to all the people at a#ordale cost$ There shall e priorit% &or the needs o&the under'privileged, sic!, elderl%, disaled, omen, and children$ The State shallendeavor to provide &ree medical care to paupers$" This is our countr%(sresponsiilit% to it(s constituent$ As a memer o& this nation, e have the right tohave access to goods, health and other social services that are a#ordale or even&ree$

)esearch by +anice .abusas:

According to the )orld *ealth +rganiation, -ental *ealth is "A state o& complete

ph%sical, mental and social ell'eing, and not merel% the asence o& disease"$ It isrelated to the promotion o& ell'eing, the prevention o& mental disorders, and thetreatment and rehailitation o& people a#ected % mental disorders$.

The /ational -ental *ealth Program -ental o& the /ational Center &or 0iseasePrevention and Control under 0+* states that mental health is an integralcomponent o& total health$ Issues on mental health includes not onl% the traditionalmental disorders ut as important are the concerns o& target populations vulnerale
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to ps%chosocial ris!s rought aout % etreme li&e eperiences 2e$g$ disasters, neardeath eperiences, heinous and violent crimes, internal displacement rought aout% religious and civil unrest3 as ell as the ps%chosocial concerns o& dail% living 2e$g$maintaining a sense o& ell eing in these di4cult times3$

/ie"l:-ental health is not 5ust the asence o& mental disorder$ It is de6ned as a state o&ell'eing in hich ever% individual realies his or her on potential, can cope iththe normal stresses o& li&e, can or! productivel% and &ruit&ull%, and is ale to ma!ea contriution to her or his communit% 2)*+, 73$

e&erence

)orld *ealth +rganiation$ 273 http:;;$ho$int;&eatures;ueruin and odrigue 23 noted on their research entitled ?@e%ond theph%sical: the state o& a nation(s mental health: the Philippine report. that mentalhealth is one the least concerns &or government agencies, especiall% in legislation$Although there are numerous health programs and or las and presidential decreesere enacted regarding health care in the Philippines, there are &e, i& not none atall are aout mental health$ In &act, as o& the moment, there is no updated andcomprehensive de6nition o& insanit% in our las and our constitution despite the&act that mental illness is the third most common &orm o& disailit% in thePhilippines, according to a /ational Statistics +4ce surve% conducted in 1$Although the state is upholding health as one o& the asic human rights, it &ails toensure the e4cient deliver% o& a#ordale and reliale health servicesnot onl%services ith regards to mental health$

)ith due respect to the government, it has attempted to recti&% the prolem in thehealth care deliver% in the countr% through di#erent eecutive orders$ Some o& thenotale and signi6cant events in our countr%Bs pulic health care during the past %ears are: 2i3 adoption o& the Primar% *ealth Care in 1979D 2ii3 Eecutive +rder 81in 198F integrating the pulic health and hospital servicesD 2iii3 Eecutive +rder 119in 1987 reorganiing the 0epartment o& *ealthD 2iv3 epulic Act 71= delegation o&health services to local government units in 199D and, 2v3 Eecutive +rder 1streamlining the organiation and &unctions o& the 0epartment o& *ealth 20+*,19913$

Gurthermore, Hulueta and iag 213 listed the general legislation andregulations, hich are somehat relevant to mental health as seen on Tale 1$*oever, one ould easil% notice that most o& the lasi& not alllisted are notdirectl% mentioning mental health and are onl% related to the su5ect$ A laspeci6call% aout mental health and or government programs regarding mentalhealth is %et to e passed and enacted$ This is a depressing &act &or the reason thatthe mental ell eing o& a person is vital &or his;her eistence in the societ% andshould e given proper attention and care$ The government is clearl% &ailing on theirresponsiilit% to its citiensthat is to provide goods, health and other social
http://www.who.int/features/qa/62/en/index.htmlhttp://www.who.int/features/qa/62/en/index.html


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services that are a#ordale or even &ree to its citiens$

$able 0Jeneral egislation ; egulations Pertinent to -ental *ealth

egislation ; egulation Kear

*doption

L Gamil% Code 1988

L Child and Kouth )el&are Code 197M

L 0omestic Adoption Act o& 1998 2A 83 1998

Welfare legislation 1e#g# bene2ts and payments for the

old disabled and the ill3

L aor Code o& the Philippines, as ameneded 197M

L Social Securit% Act o& 1997 1997

L Jovernment Service Insurance Act o& 1997 1997

L /ational *ealth Insurance Act o& 1997 1997


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L Senior Citiens Act 199

L etirement a 199F

.ompulsory 4ducation 15chool leaving age availabilityand access3

L ChildrenBs Television Act o& 1997 1997

L Children not attending schoolD children in care 197M

L Child and Kouth )el&are Code 197M

*lcohol *vailability *locohol6$obacco advertisements

L Special protection o& children against child ause, eploitation anddiscrimination 2A 7=13

199

4mployment /aw

L aor Code o& the Philippines, as amended 197M

L Civil Service a '

L Technical Education and S!ills 0evelopment Act o& 199M 199M

L Solo Parents )el&are Act o&


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*nti7discrimination on: race creed disability age

gender and se8uality

L 1987 Philippine Constitution 1987


L Special Protection o& Children Against Child Ause, Eploitation, and0iscrimination Act 2A 7=13, as amended 2A 7=83

199F

L )omen in 0eveloping and /ational @uilding Act 199

L Anti'Seual *arrassment Act 199

)eduction of Income Ine9ualities


L Social e&orm and Povert% Alleviation Act 2A 8M3 1997

Although there are pro&essionals and government'oned &acilities dealing ithmental health care across the countr%, their numer is inadeueruin and odrigue, 3$

The /ational Center &or -ental *ealth or /C-* is the onl% government hospital that


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directl% deals ith mental illness and is located in the /ational Capital egion$ The/ational Center &or -ental *ealth houses a total o& F pavilions ; cottages and ards in their M=$7 hectare compound$ The center is complete ith &acilitiesincluding its ver% on in6rmar%, medical lirar%, sports center, chapel, con&erencerooms, recreational and sports &acilities$ *oever, other government hospitals andmedical centers have ps%chiatr% departments also that provides patients ith

mental health services that are unevenl% distriuted in the di#erent regions o& thecountr%, still ith concentration in /C 2/C-*, n$d$3$

The Philippine Ps%chiatric Association, estalished in 197, currentl% has Fregistered memers throughout the countr%$ *oever, =N o& its memers or 1registered memers are practicing in the /ational Capital egion, hile the rest areunevenl% distriuted among the other regions in the countr%$ The governmentthrough the 0epartment o& *ealth tried to correct the uneven distriution o& healthcare pro&essionals through programs li!e 0octors to the @arrio and the /AS 2/urseAssigned in ural Service3 program$ Aside &rom the ps%chiatrist, most hospitals andmedical centers have a nursing sta# ho is specialiing in ps%chiatric nursing,epertise that ere acueruin odrigue, 3$

)hen loo!ing at the %earl% udget allotted to the 0epartment o& *ealth &rom the%ears 1991 to 9 2Gigure 13, e can see that the udget allocation &or the 0+*has een Quctuatingith the loest udget given in 199F amounting onl% to Php=$9 illion hile the highest udget given to the department as in 9 amountingto Php F$=7 illion 20epartment o& @udget -anagement, 83$ Although theudget &or the *ealth department has drasticall% increased throughout the %ears,the programs and susidied services ere poorl% targetedgiving onl% emphasisin the /ational Capital egion here large government hospitals are situated andare receiving the largest share o& the udget$

igure 00+* @udget &rom the %ears 1991 to 9in illion pesos

)eference:

0+*, 0epartment o& *ealth, 219913$ National Objectives for Health:Philippines-anila: 0+*$


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/ational Center &or -ental *ealth$ 2n$d$3$ /ational Center &or -ental *ealth2Gacilities3$ Department of Health$ etrieved 29, Septemer 73&romhttp:;;$doh$gov$ph;ncmh;inde$phpRoptioncomcontenttas!sectionid1Itemid1

Philippine Ps%chiatric Association, 219913$ *istorical 0evelopment o& the -ental

*ealth Services$ Philippine Journal of Psychiatry, 2F3, 1$

Philippine Psychiatric Association$ 2n$d$3$ etrieved Septemer 7, 9,&rom http:;;$ppa$ph;

>ueruin, -$, odrigue, S$ 23$ Beyond the physical : the state of a nation'smental health : the Philippine report$ -elourne: CI-*$

Hulueta, G$, iag, 0$ 213$ ocial problems and issues in the Philippines$-anila: /ational @oo!store$
http://www.doh.gov.ph/ncmh/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=15&Itemid=120http://www.doh.gov.ph/ncmh/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=15&Itemid=120http://www.ppa.ph/http://www.doh.gov.ph/ncmh/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=15&Itemid=120http://www.doh.gov.ph/ncmh/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=15&Itemid=120http://www.ppa.ph/

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