Mentally ill get greater attention

JAKARTA (JP): As many as 20 percent of the city's 12 million residents suffer from some form of mental disturbance, higher than the 18.5 percent average for 11 other cities, according to Deputy Governor for Welfare Affairs R.S. Museno.

Museno attributes said this was due to people's inability to cope with the rapid pace of social, cultural and economic change in the city. That, in turn, affects their productivity at work, he added.

The city administration intends to give greater attention to the mentally ill, including the development of more hospitals to cater for their needs, Museno said while opening a discussion on a plan to open a mental hospital in North Jakarta yesterday.

He estimated that there were about 27,000 mentally ill people in the city and that, of those, at least 10 percent required intensive care. Mental hospitals in the city currently only have 612 beds, he noted, adding that Jakarta needed at least 200 more beds. (32)