Doctors from Somalia’s first mental health hospital visiting the central regions to offer treatment say the numbers of people suffering from mental health problems are overwhelming.
A doctor and two nurses from the hospital were in the central town of Adado in Galgadud region to provide free medical services to the patients of mental problems, but the numbers of patients who have shown up overwhelmed them because it was too high then their expectation.
“More than 20 patients have shown up in less than 24 hours after we announced the free medical services,” said the head of Habeb Public Mental Health Hospitalin Mogadishu, Abdirahman Ali Awale. He told Radio Ergo’s local reporter that they have treated more than 70 people with mental health problems over three consecutive days in the town.
“The patients have travelled from across the region, but mostly came from Herale, Bahdo, Godinlabe, Bandiradley and within Adado,” he added. “Some of the patients have been kept chained to trees at their homefor more than 23 years,” said the doctor. “Some have become disabled as a result of being chained,” he noted.
In one case, Awale said they were brought a whole family of five people – the parents and three children – who have mental health problems and had all been chained at their home for years. In another case, three sisters all suffering mental illness were brought to the doctors from Herale, about 80km of southwest of Adado.
