By Stanley Nwanosike
Enugu – Dr George Eze, a former Commissioner of Health in Enugu State, on Monday advised Nigerians to ensure that mentally-ill persons received early care and treatment.
Eze, a consultant with the Neuro-Psychiatric Clinic, Enugu State University Teaching Hospital, Emene near Enugu, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that mental illness was curable.
He said that research had shown that in most communities only one per cent of the total population of mentally-ill persons had severe mental illness which could not be cured.
“Why stigmatise a person who you can do much to revive? Such person can recover to be better and re-integrated into the society.
“Empathy is the way to go; we must as a people show more empathy knowing that most cases of mental illness are 100 per cent curable, especially when the person is taken to the treatment centre and given medication early.
“From series of researches and my own observation of over 30 years in this field, only a negligible number of mental illnesses are incurable.
“In fact about one per cent in any community is incurable due to time-long damage of the neuro-system.
“We must learn to take care of these our brothers and sisters since health in any society determines how wealthy the society is. Clearly, health is wealth,’’ the former commissioner said.
He advised against taking mentally ill persons to churches, spiritual healing and worship centres.
Eze said that neuro-psychiatric clinics or hospitals were the best and approved places to take mentally ill persons for holistic care.
He appealed to Nigerians to give financial support to agencies and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) involved in taking care of mentally ill persons.
Eze is also the founder of Initiative for the Care, Support and Rehabilitation of the Mentally Ill Destitute (INSCREMID).
(Edited by Oluyinka Fadare/controlled by tajudeen Atitebi)