DOHA: Negative assumptions and stereotypes about mental illnesses have resulted in discrimination of mental patients. However, stigma can be defeated by bridging the gap between attitude change and behaviour change, says an expert.
Psychiatry expert Professor Norman Sartorius shared his expertise in combating stigmatisation of people affected with mental illnesses at the Third International Psychiatry Symposium, organised by Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC). The event brought together the world’s leading psychiatry experts and HMC healthcare professionals to discuss mental health services in the region.
Prof Sartorius is President of the Association for the Improvement of Mental Health Programs and was president of the Association of European Psychiatrists (EAP).
He was director of the Division of Mental Health of World Health Organisation (WHO) from 1977 until 1993.
He said stigma is an age-old phenomenon and each individual should play a role to fight it to create a better and more inclusive society.
“Stigma means that a person is marked by a mental illness and is wrongly considered to be of no value; he is thought to be incurable and dangerous and this is what makes people reject him,” he said.
“This is the chief obstacle to any development in the field of psychiatry when it comes to the reduction and elimination of stigma that people with mental illnesses face.”
Many individuals who have recently had mental illnesses, or are experiencing a mental health condition, struggle to function in society as they are often made to feel worthless, ashamed and guilty, and this impedes their diagnosis and treatment process, Prof Sartorius said.
“The first thing you should do in the fight against stigma of mental illnesses is to ask yourself, ‘Am I also stigmatising?” he said.
The significance of communicating with individuals affected by mental health conditions was also emphasized.
Prof Sartorius shared findings from several international studies that revealed that social contact has been paramount in bringing about societal behavioural change.
“When patients are provided with the opportunity to speak about their mental illnesses to other people they feel happy and useful and that is the best way to learn about their illnesses,” he said. The Peninsula
