China struggles to heal mental patients

As China grapples with a growing number of untreated mental patients, health officials seek solutions to high-cost treatments and a dearth of doctors.

Latest figures from the Beijing Municipal Commission of Health and Family Planning (BMCHFP) show the capital had more than 50,000 registered patients with severe psychiatric disorders by the end of 2013, and the number is rising, Guo Jiyong, a BMCHFP official, told Xinhua on Friday.

According to statistics from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, China's mental population has exceeded 100 million, with more than 16 million in worrisome conditions.

However, lack of medical infrastructure and a limited number of doctors has deprived many patients hope of a sound recovery.

The city of Beijing has only 5,915 specialists in city hospitals and 995 in community health centers. They are charged with providing ongoing care to all mental patients occupying the city's 9,888 sickbeds dedicated for such cases as well as those not in the hospital. According to the BMCHFP, in extreme cases a specialist can be charged with caring for up to 300 patients during a given period, posing immense pressure on medical professionals.

Meanwhile, many of the sick come from cash-strapped families that simply cannot afford to pay high medical fees, forcing them to opt out of treatment. Poor management at local levels has exacerbated the situation, according to the Health and Family Planning Commission of central China's Hunan Province. Hunan has about one million mental patients.

As Friday marks the 22nd World Mental Health Day, experts are calling on the government and the whole of society to pay more attention to the plight of those suffering from mental disorder.

Xie Hui, director of the BMCHFP's disease control department, said the government should build a better system for the treatment of mental patients.

He is echoed by Wang Lianggang, an official with the Beijing Lawyers Association. Wang said the government should incorporate the treatment for mental patients into the management system of the whole society, and that the government should shoulder part of responsibilities for them, rather than putting the pressure on their guardians.