120,000 Yemenis receive international psychological care, out of 7 million wounded

A United Nations fund announced that mental health care services will be provided to more than 120,000 Yemenis this year, and a United Nations agency renewed its assurances that a quarter of Yemen‘s population needs mental health care.

At the same time, the Association of Mothers of Abductees in Yemen (a human rights group) highlighted the psychological violations that the Houthi group is subjecting abductees to.

The United Nations Population Fund said it has provided mental health care services to more than 100,000 people in Yemen since the beginning of this year, as well as psychological support services through a helpline, and is implementing co -personal consultations in their dedicated mental health centers around the world. a country

He said that “most of the beneficiaries of his services have survived the violence and war events that have been taking place in the country for 10 years, causing widespread suffering, especially in situations living and housing, forcing millions of them to be displaced. , and leading to a serious crisis in food security and public health.”

In the last six years, the United Nations Fund has established 6 centres, funded by the European Union and the Norwegian government, to meet the acute mental health needs resulting from the ongoing conflict, and to address to the negative effects of the shortage. of services in this area, and the widespread social stigma against mental illness.

Amal Abdel Nour, a former employee of several international organizations, says that the suffering of psychiatric patients in Yemen was different and varied in levels, according to her observations and listening to experts working in international organizations, and that it was not easy to collect enough data and information to get detailed information and information about… The catastrophic situation of mental health in different regions.

She explained to Asharq Al-Awsat that the majority of the population in Yemen “suffer from anxiety, a tendency towards isolation, and obsessive-compulsive disorder, but many of them are conditioned have developed, especially in areas of armed conflict or displacement camps, into severe depression or bipolar disorder, with cases of suicide or attempted suicide occurring.

In recent years, individual reports and statements have been approved by several international organizations, led by the World Health Organization, the United Nations Population Fund, and other organizations such as the American Sabine Labs, the Rescue Committee International, and the Action Against Hunger Group. », on numbers and information about the number of psychiatric patients in Yemen, and the poor mental health care services.

About 7 million Yemenis suffer from psychological trauma and stress as a result of the ongoing conflict, according to reports from the United Nations, which attributed this to the years of conflict that have lasted since 2015, and the its effects in terms of basic livelihood poverty which has caused a lot. effects on the mental health of Yemenis.

A report issued by the World Health Organization reminded that about a quarter of Yemen’s population is in need of mental health care, and only 120,000 of them are receiving such care, due to continued instability and lack of services.

Most of the country’s governments suffer from a severe lack of psychological and social support, due to insufficient trained specialists and treatment centers, while social stigma contributes to denial society on people with mental illness, and fear of it makes thousands stop seeking. help, in addition to what has been aggravated by the ongoing conflict over the past ten years From low living standards, pushing 80 percent of the population below the poverty line; According to the report.

Although only a minority of the population has ongoing access to mental health care services, the report shows that there are only 46 psychiatrists across Yemen, a rate of one doctor for every 700,000 people.

Najla Sultan, a Yemeni psychologist, points out that poor health care is one of the most important factors in the accumulation of psychological disorders and the increase in the magnitude of mental health crises. There are no national mental health programs, and only 10 percent of primary health care facilities in the country are medically qualified to deal with mental problems and treat patients with mental illness. According to what she told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Najla, who volunteers for activities with several UN and international organizations in Yemen, says that all governorates have seen a significant increase in psychological disorders in recent years, including those not affected by war, riots, and militia disruptions, and whether areas of direct conflict and displacement were the highest where the numbers and types of people with falls – orders.

At the same time, the Society of Kidnapped Mothers revealed the suffering and serious psychological problems faced by the kidnapped in the prisons of the Houthi group, as a result of severe torture methods, which they described as systematic.

The association said in a statement on the occasion of “World Mental Health Day” that those who are kidnapped are kept in solitary confinement cells for long periods and receive constant threats to kill or “damaging their families disorders, or isolated in dark cells for months on end “It increases their suffering.”

According to the association, this suffering is not limited to those who have been kidnapped, but it extends to their families, who live in constant fear and worry about what the fate of their loved ones suffering from mental problems, such as trauma, depression and constant tension as a result of not knowing what happened to their children, and the fear of losing them.

The Human Rights Association called on the international community and human rights groups: “to take immediate action to stop these horrific violations, and to ensure that the necessary psychological support is provided to abductees and the families,” stressing that “mental health and human dignity can only be achieved when this systematic psychological violence against innocent victims stops.”

He strongly condemned the serious violations committed by abductors, enforced disappearances and arbitrarily detained persons without holding the perpetrators accountable, and full responsibility for the life and safety of kidnappers rests with the kidnapping authorities in all prisons.