Mental illness in Uganda: millions abandoned without diagnosis, drugs or support

Around 14 million people are thought to be living with mental illness in Uganda, yet just one percent of the country's total health expenditure goes towards mental health.

There's a severe shortage of drugs, trained specialists and facilities while patients also face an uphill battle to challenge the stigma around mental health conditions.

From Uganda - our Africa correspondent Jamal Osman reports, and we should warn you there are some upsetting scenes in his report.

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[twohopes]

that healer scamming people ...religion at his best

[sarina]

Poor babies, being a mother myself can't imagine what these parents going through and these children. 😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢

[deborahfrancois]

It may be his anger at his father's death. He is grieving

[jamman]

The issue is Uganda has hard 30 years of bad governance. Politicians stealing money to flow right and center. This has deprived many medical drugs and heath facilities and care.

[thomism]

It’s easy to look at a sad ☹️report like this and think “…how much better of else are”😎. I am a GP. Mental health programmes here in the UK are disgustingly and exceedingly insufficiently funded at least when compared to physical healthcare facilities. The poor little lad in the report is likely on the autism spectrum, non-verbal. I have patients waiting with little or no recourse to any alternative resources, 2-3 years just for an initial mental health nurse lead autism assessment and a diagnosis. It’s truly astonishingly appalling 😱😱😱

[adrielasharelah]

In urban areas, mental health literacy is available the problem comes in with the rural areas where by most of the people still belief in traditionalists and are not likely to change their mentally in the nearby future....

[southafrica]

Very sad that our country has no facilities and not understanding

[FlowersfromNan]

😢 My heart grieves for them. How sad, to be locked away because of illness.prayers that they get the help they need.❤

[marieogara]

This tragic film needs more context, I think. Uganda has a population of about 49 million, and this film says about "14 million people are thought to be living with mental illness in Uganda, yet just one percent of the country's total health expenditure goes towards mental health. " What does "are thought" mean, especially using one tragic and gratuitous extreme example. Perhaps this was a section of a longer in depth film? It's confusing in many ways to me, snippets of "Traditional Medicine" and Religious "Healing" churches, all mixed together, without clear direction. Dire poverty, lack of education, and funding as government priority? Which? All?
The total Health budget in 2021 was 5.1% of national budget. (UNICEF).

[ahmedaraale]

I have mild depression mental illness is real

[missh]

Locking up is going to make him even more crazy 😢

[cheryl]

THOSE POOR KIDS, IT BREAKS MY HEART THERE’S NO HELP.
IT WAS SAD TO SEE THE YOUNG MAN IN A HUT, CAGED LIKE THAT,
I UNDERSTAND WHY BUT IT’S STILL SO SAD.

[SorminaESar]

Mental illness and behavior caused by malnutrions and high depression so likely the Urganda's peoples need some medicines, nutrions and trauma healing day by day. Hopefully, the UN Humanitary Commitee, WHO help them

[ruthiecarole]

This is a terrible situation for the Mentally ill and for the Famalies who have no support.The Government needs to realize Mental Health is just as important and invest more money .Locking them up does no good and doesn t change there situation, normally making it worse .Very sad.

[thomism]

You can’t still be talking 60 years later about the failings of the colonial governments.

[josephrobi]

Interesting for sure 😮 I don’t know what is better America also locked their mental ills. And committed in the past many horrific things to them like using them like testing labs. My sister got her tooth removed from her in one shut my mother was devastated when she saw my sister like that. And asked them why did you do that ?. In America that have institution like prison to lock them up. My sister was in one of them. The society doesn’t understand why they are like that. It is a difficult situation for sure for the parents and the acceptance from the community. Fear play a role into this ignorance lack of knowledge etc. I think if he can stay as long as possible with the family is much better but knowledge should be added to the family from the medical department. Common sense goes along way into this.

[Jono]

all those churches and nobody is cured

[scotthopkins]

Who knows this family and where they stay in Uganda?

[marieazrak]

What medication is he taking for his seizures

[grisall]

Most of the homeless in the US suffer from mental illness - there are places for them to go for help but they'd rather live on the streets - most of the murders in the US are gang on gang in cities - more than half - but a significant proportion of the rest and virtually all of the mass shootings are committed by seriously mentally ill. The first school shooting in the US happened in the 1970s when laws were made making it difficult to institutionalize mentally ill with violent tendencies without their consent. Your country isn't the only one with this problem