While people around the world are becoming more knowledgeable about different diseases and ways to keep themselves healthy, most of them are still scared to even talk about mental health.    Yes, good health and physical fitness are indispensable for all aspects of life, be it physical activities, professional requirements or daily living. One cannot run his daily life without having a certain degree of physical fitness. And in many jobs, employees are even screened for ill-health or disease before they are assigned certain responsibilities. But the world is still finding it difficult to digest the fact that being physically fit and not suffering from any diseases hardly amount to being mentally sound.

Mental illnesses are common among people of all nationalities and all age groups.  In fact, some forms of these psychological problems are so common that they eclipse various physical illnesses and diseases in terms of numbers. But despite being so widespread, even common psychological problems—like anxiety disorders, mood disorders, psychotic disorders, eating disorders, impulse control and addiction disorders, personality disorders and obsessive compulsive disorder—are often dealt with carelessness. Though not always harmful, even these common diseases can impair our action and sometimes higher mental functions like consciousness, ability to concentrate, memory, intelligence and judgment if not treated in time.

So it is as much necessary to treat mental diseases as it is to treat physical ones. The screening for mental illness should be done routinely and with a special emphasis on a person’s job. In the case of our country, even though we lack a proper mental-health directive, it is imperative that we provide psychological  assessment services to vulnerable populations.

 Many Nepalis working abroad are never properly assessed for mental illnesses, either before leaving or while on the job. Those who are already diagnosed and receiving treatment also tend to hide problems  or even  discontinue their treatment for fear of rejection by their employers.

Given that they are the major source of remittances in our country, and considering the fact that most of them have to go through enormous mental and physical ordeals on distant shores, it is better if we start out by providing mental-health services to this group. The mental health consultation cost in Nepal is perhaps the cheapest in the world, and even after the screening costs are added, it should not be a burden to our workers.

Similarly, students form yet another vulnerable group who require psychological screenings and treatment. It would be a huge waste of resources to keep on investing in them and expecting the best from them without dealing with the different psychological problems they suffer from.

Thus, screening for mental health problems does not just benefit the sufferers but also the society at large. Early detection of problems always helps in early intervention and better prognosis, thus reducing cost of intervention, morbidity and mortality. Therefore, we all need come out of the cocoon of stigma and act wisely on this important issue.

Dr Shakya is an Assoc Prof and Head, Department of Psychiatry, Patan Academy of Health Sciences