Mental Health

Documentary Premiere: Dignity Denied (follow-up)

Mental Health

In mid-September it emerged that 36 former Life Esidimeni psychiatric patients have died. These deaths come after the private health care provider's contract was terminated, resulting in patients being moved to community NGOs in and around Gauteng. In early October another death was confirmed, bringing the death toll to 37.

kyla
October 11, 2016

Dead psychiatric patient was ‘well’ before being moved

Health, Mental Health, News

The brother of a deceased mentally-ill patient says he was healthy before being moved from a Life Esidimeni facility.

Amy Green
September 16, 2016

Documentary Premiere: Dignity Denied

Health, Mental Health

When the Gauteng Department of Health terminated its contract with private health service provider, Life Esidimeni, hundreds of mentally ill patients were placed in the care of people ill-equipped to look after them.

kyla
August 16, 2016

If you are sane, you need to read this

Mental Health

I don’t trust my psychiatrist. She is a lovely woman, expedient and efficient at her job, and she is the only one of the many specialists that I have consulted who has successfully prescribed medication that does its job.

mia-mccarthy
July 11, 2016
2 Comments

Mass move of Gauteng’s mentally ill

Mental Health

Deinstitutionalisation. It sounds good: taking mentally ill people out of psychiatric institutions and putting them into community homes or back with their families. But the outcome is seldom positive, as Gauteng patients have discovered.

kerrycullinan
June 27, 2016
1 Comment

What now for patients after psychiatric hospital closes?

Mental Health, News

Relatives of mentally ill loved ones protested last week, saying their family members are not doing well since they were discharged from Life Esidimeni’s psychiatric hospitals.

peta-thornycroft
June 15, 2016

Families vow to fight patient transfers

Mental Health

As the fate of almost 2000 mental health patients set to be booted from a state-funded hospital remains unclear, patient families have vowed to take their fight to the steps of the Gauteng Department of Health.

jamesthabo
May 25, 2016

Policy guidelines: 72-hour Assessment of Involuntary Mental Healthcare Users

Health, Health Systems, Mental Health

These 18-page guidelines list facility requirements for holding mental health patients for 72-hour involuntary assessments as well relevant procedure and guidelines for clinicians.

healthe
April 29, 2016

Policy guidelines: Seclusion and Restraint of Mental Health Care Users

Health, Health Systems, Mental Health

The Department of Health’s guidelines detail how healthcare workers may use seclusion and physical restraint with mental patients and caution that these actions should be seen as a last resort.

healthe
April 28, 2016

Opinion: Psychologists playing a defensive game

Health, Mental Health

In a country plagued by endemic violence and social inequality, psychologists cannot constrain themselves to the four walls of consulting rooms. To meet the needs of its patients, psychology must rethink its identity and voice in the fight for social justice, writes Garret Barnwell.

Guest Author
March 31, 2016
1 Comment

[Updated]The hidden violence: Women and attempted suicide

Health, Mental Health, Women's Health

For hundreds of murdered South African women, the last face they see is a face they used to love. Almost 60 percent of women murdered annually may die by their partner’s hands but who is counting the women who die by their own hands when violence at home becomes too much, asks Garret Barnwell.

Guest Author
March 29, 2016

Child suicide attempts may stem from anxiety

Health, Mental Health, Our Health

A Northern Cape community has been shocked by the suicide attempt by a 10-year-old boy. Experts say that children who attempt suicide may be calling out for help to deal with anxiety and an inability to cope with certain situations.

mpholekgetho
February 23, 2016

School receives counselling after pupil allegedly killed by friend

Health, Mental Health, Our Health

Maniini Junior and Senior Primary School pupils are receiving counselling following the shooting death of a classmate who was allegedly shot by a fellow student.

NdivhuwoMukwevho
January 25, 2016

People living with mental disorders uncounted, at risk

Mental Health, Our Health

In some corners of South Africa, those living with mental disorders are still tied to trees and denied food by the very people meant to protect them – their families. As mental illness remains shrouded in stigma, real questions remain about where South Africa is in the fight for better mental health

PolaoK
December 15, 2015

Report: Integrating mental health into primary health care in low, middle-income countries

Health, Mental Health

In this British Journal of Psychiatry supplement, the Programme for Improving Mental Health Care (PRIME) outlines district mental health care plans from five low- and middle-income countries.

healthe
November 3, 2015

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