The Mental Health Leadership and Advocacy Programme (mhLAP) has called for the formation of a board to ensure the smooth implementation of the mental health law.
Mr Humphrey Kofie, Country Facilitator of mhLAP, who made the call on Wednesday during a stakeholders meeting in Accra, said the mental health board would ensure that the legislative instrument necessary for the implementation of law is passed.
He also advised that people with expertise in mental health issues should be included to serve on the board.
Mr Peter Yaro, Executive Director of Basic Needs – a non-governmental organization – called for the establishment of community mental health care facilities where the family, village/ community and village health nurses would have responsibility towards the mentally ill person.
He said there is the problem of food, security, medication and housing at the psychiatric hospital, stressing that introducing community mental health care systems will resolve that.
Mr Yaro said the psychiatric hospital could best serve as the place for very acute cases of mental illnesses.
Professor Oye Gureje, the Initiator and Project Director of mhLAP, called on government to ensure that the mental health board is constituted to ensure the smooth implementation of the mental health bill.
The theme for the stakeholders meeting was “Briefing and reviewing on the state of the mental health board, legislative instrument and efforts by Parliamentary Select Committee to implement the mental health law- the role of mhLAP stakeholders council”.