Globally the 10th of October is observed as World Mental Health Day. The theme for 2023 is mental health is universal human right.
Health can be defined as “ healthy state of well being” which should address the general condition of body and mind.
The WHO has emphasized that the presence of major physical diseases affects the mental health of individuals as well as of entire families.
Mental health is a basic human right for all people.
Unfortunately, people with mental health needs around the world, particularly Africa, experience a wide range of human rights violations.
Such persons are excluded from community life, discriminated against, and denied basic rights such as food and shelter. More than half of persons living with mental illness in most developing countries are homeless.
Homelessness not only indicates a failure to guarantee access to safe, affordable, and adequate home for all, but it also violates as well a number of other human rights. It also violates the principle of human dignity enshrined in articles 1 and 22 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
This year’s celebration coincides with the 12th anniversary of Mensah Mental Health Rehabilitation Project (MEMHREP) worldwide.
The NGO operates in about four countries, namely Ghana, UK, Netherlands, and Sierra Leone, and is dedicated to addressing the plights of persons living with mental illness and other vulnerabilities.
The organisation has over the years rescued hundreds of persons with mental illness sleeping on the streets of Ghana and beyond and given them employable skills after rehabilitation. It has also fed, clothed, and educated thousands of vulnerable people through its FEE module.
The FEE ( FEED, EDUCATE, and EMPLOY) programme is a social intervention module designed to reduce mental illness in a particular area where persons suffering from mild symptoms of mental illness could be located.
Other modules of the NGO includes: Mental Health Education (MHE), Community Mental Health Support (CMHS), Mental Health Outreach (MHO), Complimentary Home Support (CHS) and the Agricultural programme.
The primary goal of the NGO is to complete an ongoing ultra- modern rehabilitation centre in the Ashanti region of Ghana.
The facility, upon completion, will provide quality mental health care for persons living with mental illness in Ghana and beyond.
The organisation is therefore appealing to companies, religious bodies, governments, and individuals to come to their aid for the completion of this project. We believe your financial and moral support would put smiles on the faces of persons with mental illness and other vulnerabilities and make the world a better place for all.
The rehabilitation centre, upon completion, will be able to house about 300-500 in-patients as well as 1,500 out-patients.
Source:ghanapublisher.com
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