A selfie from Mt Carmel Hospital!

Abstract

Mental health is never an easy subject to write about. The stigma that shrouds this issue is immeasurable and heartbreaking. Even though so much effort and resources have been dedicated to this matter at policy and service provision level, for some strange reason the mental health agenda still remains an uncomfortable subject to debate. Unquestionably, a great deal of work has been done in this sector; improvement in community services, the appointment of a Commissioner for Mental Health, enactment of a modern mental health legislation and the Guardianship Law, providing for ongoing embellishment of Mt Carmel Hospital, improvement in terms of numbers and of quality of the mental health workers, revamping a specialised ward for young people, amongst others - but yet as a society we still seem to be far-flung from this agenda. [Excerpt]