Mental health cases recorded at health facilities in Ghana’s Eastern Region have more than doubled over the past decade, prompting calls for increased investment in mental healthcare infrastructure, personnel and medicines.
Eastern Regional Director of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr Damien Punguyire, disclosed that reported mental health cases increased from 3,200 in 2016 to 5,738 in 2024 and 6,264 in 2025.
He said the figures represented an increase of more than 100 per cent over the period, although the actual number of people living with mental health conditions could be significantly higher because many cases remain unreported.
Dr Punguyire made the disclosure at the handing-over of a 35-bed expanded and refurbished mental health unit at the Eastern Regional Hospital in Koforidua.
The GH¢1.3 million facility, funded by the Kabaka Foundation, has been named the Nana Owiredu Wadie I Mental Health Unit.
According to Dr Punguyire, new cases of depression and psychosis reported at health facilities in the region also increased from 354 to 546 over the past two years, further highlighting the growing demand for mental healthcare services.
He said the surge in cases was occurring against the backdrop of significant gaps in mental health infrastructure.
“Many of our patients who require admission have to wait for beds or are referred to facilities far from their communities,” he said, citing inadequate admission capacity as one of the major challenges confronting mental healthcare delivery in the region.
The Regional Health Director also identified inadequate human resources as a major concern.
He said the region had limited numbers of psychiatric nurses, clinical psychologists and psychiatrists, with only one psychiatrist serving all 33 districts and municipalities in the Eastern Region.
Dr Punguyire further raised concerns about inadequate logistics and medicines, noting that some medications required by mental health patients are not covered by the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
He said this situation placed additional financial pressure on families caring for people with mental health conditions.
Stigma Compounding Mental Health Challenge
Dr Punguyire said stigma and discrimination continued to prevent many people from seeking timely treatment.
He said some families still resort to chaining, hiding or abandoning relatives with mental health conditions instead of seeking professional medical care.
He stressed that mental illness should be treated as a health condition rather than a curse.
According to him, untreated mental health conditions can have serious consequences, including an increased risk of suicide, while affected persons may also fail to seek treatment for other illnesses such as hypertension, diabetes, HIV and tuberculosis.
He therefore called for greater public education and early intervention to ensure that people experiencing mental health challenges receive appropriate care.
New Facility to Expand Admission Capacity
The new mental health unit comprises three wards, three consulting rooms, an injection room, pharmacy, recreational area, kitchen, nurses’ changing and consulting rooms, an office for the head of the unit and washrooms, among other facilities.
Founder and Chairman of the Kabaka Foundation, Nana Owiredu Wadie I, said the project was part of the Foundation’s commitment to supporting mental healthcare delivery in the region.
He said the facility would particularly benefit young people battling substance abuse, as well as children and other vulnerable persons living with mental health conditions.
Nana Wadie said every Ghanaian deserved access to quality healthcare, including mental healthcare, without stigma or discrimination.
The Medical Director of the Eastern Regional Hospital, Dr Aiden Suntaa Saanwie, said the facility would improve the working environment for health professionals while providing a more appropriate setting for patients.
He said mental health services had historically received inadequate funding despite the significant burden of mental health conditions.
Dr Saanwie urged staff of the unit to treat patients with dignity while maintaining high standards of care.
Growing Demand Since 2012
The mental health unit at the Eastern Regional Hospital was established in 2012 to provide inpatient psychiatric services closer to residents of the Eastern Region.
Before its establishment, patients requiring admission were often referred to Accra and other tertiary psychiatric facilities.
However, increasing demand has placed pressure on the unit’s existing infrastructure.
The hospital said outpatient mental health services had previously been provided in a facility that was later converted into a diabetes and hypertension clinic.
The service was subsequently moved to the main outpatient department, where increasing patient numbers and the growing number of doctors created further space constraints.
The hospital said the arrangement made it difficult to provide the privacy and environment required for consultations, particularly in cases involving severely disturbed or aggressive patients.
The situation became more pressing following the arrival of a permanent psychiatrist after the hospital had previously relied on temporary psychiatric doctors from Pantang.
The expansion of the unit is therefore expected to increase admission capacity and provide a more suitable environment for mental health treatment as the number of reported cases continues to rise.
Source:Mybrytfmonline.com.
