The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has disclosed a concerning development which reveals that between January and July 2023, a total of 40,716 new cases of mental health issues was documented in Ghana.
This revelation was made by Dr. Patrick Kumah Aboagye, the Director General of the GHS, during the national World Mental Health Day celebration on October 10, 2023, in the Oti Region.
Notably, more than half of these new cases, about 51.4%, were females, and they encompassed conditions such as substance use disorders and neurological disorders.
In light of these statistics, Dr. Aboagye expressed his deep concern about the growing number of mental health cases in the country and emphasized the GHS’s commitment to delivering high-quality and safe mental health services.
The situation in Ghana is particularly alarming as it grapples with a rapid increase in mental illness, affecting approximately 2.4 million people, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Prof Francis Kasalo, the WHO’s representative to Ghana, highlighted the negative public attitudes toward mental health in a recent interview with JoyNews, including the habit of labeling individuals with mental health conditions as difficult, prone to anger, or even experiencing spiritual problems.
