health

Mental illness prompts debate

Panama's treatment of the mentally ill, especially in rural areas, was criticized yesterday by Ángel Valencia, the local representative of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

Valencia said that very few health resources are dedicated to treating the mentally ill, and that those afflicted by the disease are often stigmatized by society.

The official said that the government needs to allocate more resources in this area while social organizations need to make a greater effort to make people aware of the disease and that it can be treated.

Juana Herrera, general director of the Instituto de Salud Mental de Panama (Insam), disagreed with this assessment, saying that the government has made great strides in treating mental illnesses.

She pointed to the recently remodeled Hospital Regional de Azuero as an example of the government's commitment to treating mental illnesses. In addition to the new facility, the government has allocated more money for medicine to treat patients with mental health issues and has also started training staff to better deal with disorders.

Herrera did admit that health officials are lacking official figures concerning the prevalence of mental illness in the country.