Cant get the help they need. Take a look. The depression, bipolar disorder, Mental Health issues like these are seen as the boot topics in many african societies with limited access to medical health care services, Young Africans to struggling with their Mental Health, i left to their own devices. The dw 77 percent is them be at precisely the setup to look at this silent epidemic circle satellite repeat, i me, of course, talk to the people at the heart of its advocacy. And im going to start off with here, mr. Benjamin who has 10 Years Experience of course, talking about Mental Health. First of all just gave us an overview of the Mental Health situation here in zambia. We have most of us say this is highly centralized and the 2nd on the services um uh we have a government restrictions and private practice coming up. And we have a number of institutions that are also providing uh like telephone counseling services. Just to make sure that the access to Mental Health services is made available, accessible and affordable, even to those one, not within the 2nd. All right, let me just come to the number time out here. Benjamin has been in the advocacy for over 10 years. You start to just do as a goal. Tell us what has been your focus, is it that for the past beckett, a lot of work has not been done in this, but maybe you want to start your own advocacy as well. So my focus has been on raising Mental Health and wellness and ending the stigma that surrounds Mental Health. Because in the past, people have been glued to or you know, have stuck to these misconceptions about Mental Health. As such as the belief that Mental Illnesses occurs or, you know, its the one position. So my focus has been to debunk those miss and make people realize that Mental Illness is something that can talk to anyone. And we have duncan here who yourself has experienced this live to talk to us about the experience with Mental Health. How is that phase of your life . Like i struggled with depression and anxiety for over 12 years. In that moment, i became so side by the age of 10. And at the age of 16 i studied attempting suicide. I did my, i did make really big someone at the age of 6, which i develop souls and my leaps. You know, sometimes when i, when, if i go to school at home, my friends would love for me that because policy and, but it didnt come out of my lips. So i received rejection from there and coming from a broken home as well. So i felt i had low self esteem and out my on. So i have to kept me as a way old file out so much cant do the future because you i was a point in my life. The doctor told me that i might have been go blind because of the migrant ed dick, which i started to affect my eyes. So i sat down and i thought, whats the in the future . And we suggest that we things where because we struggled so much in the front media with mom and dad separated. We went through so much by 9 chevy. So the i was no, any form of hope for me. What about the family, your images surrounding . You understand what you are going through. I know they did not understand. Okay, let me just come to mom here briefly. She is duncan small, a mom. If you could just tell us how you feel, after realizing that your child was actually struggling with Mental Health, and you cannot really pin point that that was actually what he was going through. So many, no, none of the numbers that you had left up with up to which but the women and update the good news of my maintenance or frequency by the number was and i thought some guys the by difficult day, the funding is to me to use the same feed, i need to meet them. A solution, i mean is, will be time. This will be indeed, date was up as of today, department of what was it by and then depending to my phone is im reading the case. Did you receive any sort of help during this phase . I mean, if i did in the, the sad part is uh, if i can, if i knew that i was struggling to make toys, i had no idea what to mean to help with these. Let me just come back to you quickly bench. I mean, when were looking at some of the causes some suicidal causes that are actually result in just some of the, some Mental Health issues with some of the what are some of those that youve encountered. So the most common causes of Mental Health issues and possibly talking about the increased substance abuse, alcohol, and drug abuse in young people. But we also want to emphasize on the aspect of what we call the bio psychosocial. So some individuals that is ready by this type of dispos while they are born in families where there is a significant yourselves, family members being treated or under the investment that youre in, this district size would perpetuate the, the yes and eventually you know, later on. So thats now, so im on with nude psychological and you know, i have, im a college go stop by during integration. Let me just come quickly to apply to here, who of course talks about a lot of social issues. If you are a port, a musician, voice of the voice less, how do you e c, the issue of Mental Health is um, yeah, i think the, the, the conversation around Mental Health is from the one of the exclusive compositions. You can find such compositions in poor communities. Why do you think its, its like that to you . Ill tell you. The poor people have no excuse for what if ive been seen in mind, if youre down at school, youll say, if youre just out, if you, if you, if you drop a dies, nobody would know that youre too much size. Do you have most of these kids lose your parents when theyre young and most of these kids experience so much without nobody paying attention to them . So these composition is, is exclusive to us in class of people that have an opportunity to even understand leaving next se, se, composition their own mental youth. Let me come to you dont come quickly to just take us through that, that state of mind to really what was it when you were going through . What was it that you felt that you need, that way youre communicating through your actions, your emotions that people were feeling very difficult to understand and grew up . How did that make you feel . So i showed all of the science of suicide to my family. The people that i was leaving always, but nobody could be able to recognize my mental state. So i had to withdraw from people i. I lived alone the life and i was very shy. I had low self esteem as well. I also could talk much about, they seemed right most so much about die, you know, be the only solution there on your way out. So i showed all those things. Sometimes i took to maybe spiritual people, but they told me, lets pray about it. So i felt least understood and i felt the only way out to suggest in my life, i mean, you talked about um, seeking for spiritual help as well. Dont let me just come to dr. Francisco here. Tell us, how is the situation of medical access when it comes to Treatment Services . Mental health is a Health Presentation like any other Health Presentation. Thus, if an individual feels like theyve got a Mental Health issue, a condition, a problem, they should go to the nearest Mental Health center. Just like we go to the nearest Health Center for a headache. For hypertension that bit is h i v, this is not the case. Yeah. You, we are in the only by the way, the early Mental Health hospital with this china i this is the only one we have in insomnia. Is that correct . Allow me to correct. Thats the go ahead. So its the 2, sorry. Psychiatric hospital is the final Referral Hospital when it comes to Mental Health. So we think was the very like the center of excellence when it comes to psychiatric practice. What is Mental Health really embedded in your primary Health Care System . This is what the question is. I think this was something that will cause them to be investing in. And i believe this is not something that is unique to them. Yeah, its actually a global issue, i think for a long time Mental Health has been sidelined in the practice of medicine, but i, you know, excuse in the, you know, just like to ration. Yeah. Because were trying to move to answer a major area that was thought that is with primary health care is awareness and says size a soon as you have heard from them, a tom a from down can even from page i mean even pull out the domains and we need to reach out to the community. So 1st we all know strategy has been improving awareness state vision, our Mental Health. Oh, going back to that, i will come back to what exactly you are doing moving forward, but for now weve established that that is a problem is, lets talk about that briefly. I dont lose introduce yourself. Yeah. Maybe how much is that . Got you nice to some of the things that we want to talk about is yeah. And do want to improve on. Its not just about talking and coming on t v and making sure. But what were going to send to the would be and what we want to achieve as africa, as that idea is that we want Mental Health to be if i take 25. 00 days. So right now it is not a priority so much or should i . Yeah, and this i will say through my boy, yes, because im and thats good for a Mental Health patient. They will drive the sponsor, a patient who is suffering from casa and not me the way because you start to a priority. But let me just come back to dr. Francisco he, ill come back to you that he said it is not a priority for this country Mental Health, i will big to defy one as i am speaking right now. Yeah. If you compare it maybe to other conditions like h, i v t b, we to well funded and we have many partners finding that we it looked like the ministry is only prioritizing those areas with thats not the case. We have Many International partners on board that are funding those activities. So it to make an field of medicine like Mental Health, which doesnt have many partners look like its been neglected. Okay. And further, on top of that, i know you said were going to talk about some of the things that we have to come back to that later because i am still trying to understand if its that its really been prioritize. And im going to come to you duncan here, would you say it has really been prioritized. Youve mentioned that having enough partners that could provide this also sounds like theres not much interest invested in that. If you would want to just come in for me, my comment on that is that i feel this more that can be done because for example, i struggled with depression and anxiety for 12 years. I was a young person in school. I never buy the, i dont know, but then i never saw anything about Mental Health on tv this day. Youre seeing that its being given that attention and but then why is it like that . Because i feel if i had people that came to my school to talk about Mental Health out of different its knowing what im struggling with and out reached out and seek for help. Ok. As an active is the also have a platform, right . Do you have a blog, is that going to put test . How do you send the communication around Mental Health . Because of course the media is very important in that course. 8. Okay, so on my radio podcast i, i usually include professionals and also people. Weve lived experience, please allow me to contribute to the question that you had as to why. Yeah. When with the middle of the as a period, i dont agree. But honestly speaking, we only see the government doing things during these special days like Suicide Prevention day. And Mental Health day, and then you turn to people struggling with Mental Health and really does some have the papers or the degree, but theyre not employed in the system. Why is that . So indeed, we have a lot of work to do when it comes to Mental Health that they would not deny. We have a lot of work to do, and its an upcoming field in medicine and in health below valley. Go buddy, i should emphasize that. And i think as im getting the we did, i think were doing pretty well, though allow me to do in for do it. Whats the indicator for that . We have silver projects, Mental Health is a month. Those areas are fields in health that were factoring in. The raise, a very good concern about the Health Facilities allow me to educate my plan on this as well as of the public. Let me take advantage of this platform when, when we go for Health Practice or medical practice, you know that for every pro 5 medical Health Practice, you have to rotate through psychiatry to Mental Health is part of our dictation system. And this is something that weve prioritized it to ensure that everyone who graduates in the Health Sector should ever take that through psychiatry does belong to a my number tama, would any individual comes to Health Facility they should get. They mutual Mental Health, all of Us Medical Health personnel have been trained is a country and Mental Health wanted to order to change what the doctor said. So being able to uh, being trained to diagnose an illness does not mean treating that unit. Okay. Yes. So the able to see that they but you know that, but do they have the power, the necessary tools and this, that equipment to treat because youre facing that trains to diagnose it . And then whats the point . I mean, how many, how many people do we have in the rural areas that have been treated for Mental Health problems . And i think that is what i wanted to raise again to hear it. The people are that they can diagnose. But if the facility is not giving the right treatment, then whats the point . This comes back to us, the on the, on every health plus personnel to pick up the mentor and prior ties, Mental Health. And this is what we keep encouraging for Mental Health. What is key is a good history taking. Remember, its psychological, its information, its social. This is what we aim to train. Are you really dealing with the, with, with the psycho social aspect of it as well . Because then why are we having suicide . The suicide is ever we have so many reasons why one. Weve reached a level of suicide and the manufacturer has to presentational suicide. First one, the individual talked of the 1st is the individual able to open up to anyone . How is it before training . Remember, even the most of the most people in the world with so many people around them have committed suicide. Theyve got access to all the best, mental specific, his best mental book, those psychotherapy, psychiatrist on their team. Okay. But still committed suicide with a smile on the 5th, im going to come by because duncan didnt mention that in the beginning, he did not have a place to go to and even where he went to hospitals or places, they cannot really tell what his problem well this is what were trying to know my life duncan always saying that there hasnt been some shuffle. No, but were working on them. Yes, i was coming back to you, but let me just come to the mcdonald quickly before i come back. You are studying psychiatry of telling me how is the enrollment of this field in your school and how many people do you have in your class. Just just to know the stat numbers here. So they know means its not so difficult in, in my class guarantee we have about 36, you know, as much as people me want to study psychiatry, i guess the interest is growing slowly, but then you know, even when we were getting into this field for my students would tell us that we had just wasting all the time. Youve been assigned Something Else to do because the government doesnt employee as many. So, you know, even outlets or sometimes advise us that we should create our own employment. Create your own mental facilities because the government does not employed people that would be private and very much expensive us. What exactly that is going to be exact. Let me just come to you quickly here. Yes. Tell me what, what, what do you want to comment on that . So the problem that were having is the information gap. Most people dont know about Mental Health, right . Was this so ministry or types towards Mental Health . So many beliefs and misconceptions that need to be broken down 1st. So we need everyone here, the advocates and stuff like that. What they really need to do is get to the guest gressick because of the moment its regarded as something that spiritual someone may be going through. Duncan mission, right . He was going through him into health challenge. When he went to people to ask about what was going on, people didnt know what to tell him. They didnt know what was going on, right . That just shows us the real problem that we need to address, which is the information gap. Theres an information away and is gap an