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Mukudzei Chingwere in ROME, Italy
The Government has been impressed by the Italian Mental Health model which emphasises the need for patient rehabilitation and community service as opposed to a punitive handling for illness-induced transgressions.
This was revealed by Deputy Minister of Health and Child Care Dr John Mangwiro who is leading Zimbabwe’s delegation at the ongoing Global Mental Health Summit (GMHS) here.
Deputy Minister Mangwiro is standing in for Vice President and Minister of Health and Child Care, Dr Constantino Chiwenga.
Zimbabwe is on a drive to improve its services sector and social safety nets in line with President Mnangagwa’s Vision 2030 and the health services has been identified as one of the sectors in need of a reboot.
During the first day of the GMHS, which started yesterday, Dr Mangwiro and his delegation got a dashboard view of global best practices from participating member states.
The delegation was especially impressed by the Italian model which is informed by Government’s appreciation that mental health patients should not be doomed.
The Italian progress is anchored on the 1978 “Basaglia law” which shifted the heart of care from psychiatric hospitals to community services.
“The Vice President who is the Minister of Health and Child Care (Dr Chiwenga) is taking non-communicable diseases seriously and mental health is one of the non-communicable diseases which was behind,” said Deputy Minister Mangwiro.
“So, international levels are areas where there is cross pollination of ideas.
“For instance, the Italians are saying they changed their approach to mental health handling about 44 years ago.
“They are now going community based where mentally ill patients – they now call them people with lived experience – they are now handled differently at community level, and this is the way we are going.”
Dr Mangwiro said Zimbabwe already has some aspects of the Italian approach in its interventions like the friendship bench which mainly focuses on mental health issues in workplaces.
But as part of President Mnangangwa’s Vision of living no one behind, Deputy Minister Mangwiro said the model now has to be cross cutting as a way of ensuring every mentally ill person accesses better handling from their respective communities.
“We have gotten new ideas to what we were doing,” he said.
“In the past the approach was punitive. Those who were doing these mini incarcerations they were doing their best.
“But through international engagements our minds are being opened much broader to say how does a mental health patient feel. Now it is a matter of communication.”
Italian Minister of Health Dr Roberto Speranza said: “Mental health it is an intrinsic part of our individual and collective health and well-being it is an essential component of the resilience of communities, and it is therefore essential to implement policies that promote inclusive, effective systems that will protect the rights of individuals.
“In 1978 the law 180, known as ‘Basaglia law’, changed the organisation of psychiatric care, with the aim of shifting the heart of care from psychiatric hospitals to community services.
“Since then Italy became an international reference model. Nevertheless, there are still critical issues to be addressed and many improvements that can be done.”
World Health Organisation Director-General Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus in his remarks also emphasised the need to cater for mental health needs as a prerequisite for achieving universal health coverage.
Online Reporter