MUHAMMADIYAH.ID, YOGYAKARTA – This pandemic leads to a decrease of mental health of Indonesian people. This circumstance becomes a concern of Muhammadiyah psychiatrists to take an action of the mental health. On Monday (29/6), the COVID-19 Talk on “Muhammadiyah Psychiatrists Unite for Mental Health of Indonesia” discussed roles of Muhammadiyah psychiatrists and a stigma of mental disorders.
A psychiatrist of Universitas Ahmad Dahlan dr. Widea Rossi Desvita, Sp.KJ. stated that Muhammadiyah psychiatrists should collaborate with Muhammadiyah autonomous organizations. “Each organization and person with a different profession of Muhammadiyah can be in a Muslim mental health team,” declared dr. Widea.
The psychiatrists can also promote what they do to public since people tend to have a negative perception on mental disorders. They are quite skeptical of mental health issues and afraid of meeting psychiatrists. Data revealed that about 19 million Indonesian people at the age of 2-15 suffered mental illness and this year it is predicted that Indonesia becomes the second greatest mental health patients.
Besides, Director of Rumah Sakit Jiwa Islam (RSJI) of Klender dr. Prasila Darwin, Sp.KJ. informed that Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia expected to alleviate possibilities to deaths due to non-communicable diseases including mental disorders. However, the number of the deaths is quite hard to reduce because of several essential factors as public negative opinions on mental illness, fear, and difficult access to mental health facilities.
Thus, Muhammadiyah as a pioneer should synergize to help Indonesian people suffering the mental illness. Muhammadiyah psychiatrists possess abilities to embody the good mental health of Indonesia. They can get play roles in sectors of health and education. Indeed, roles of psychiatrists are vital in a hospital to boost hospital management to perform law on mental health and provide rooms for the mental illness patients. In fact, Muhammadiyah hospitals have not had wards for the patients.
Furthermore, one of the efforts to support mental health of Indonesia is to mingle and toughen the mental illness patients in the midst of the stigma. According to a psychiatrist of Asri Medical Center of Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta and PKU Muhamamdiyah Gamping Dr. dr. Warih Adnan Puspitosari, MSc, Sp.KJ, the mental illness patients have a self-stigma.
“Hence, conducting open activities among the mental health team, the patients, and people will improve the self-stigma of the patients themselves and public. When the patients meet other people, they feel that they are accepted and become more productive. We have to break the stigma through our programs,” asserted Dr. dr. Warih.