Premier urges agencies to focus on children’s mental health

KUCHING: Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg has called for immediate attention from all related agencies to focus on the mental health and wellbeing of children nationwide.
 
Citing the National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2019, he said about 424,000 children were reported to have mental health problems in Malaysia.
 
“It is recorded that 8.8 percent of children from the rural population, 8.4 per cent (girls), 9.5 per cent (children between 10 and 15 years), and 9.2 per cent (those with a B40 household income) are more likely to face these problems.
 
“Among factors contributing to this are problems with peers, conduct, emotionality, and hyperactivity.
 
“Besides that, in the NHMS 2022: Adolescent Health Survey, among adolescents aged 13 to 17, one in eight had suicidal thoughts, one in 10 attempted suicide, and one in four felt depressed.
 
“A decade-long trend from 2012 to 2022 showed an increasing trend in suicidal thoughts and attempted suicide, respectively,” he said.
 
He said this when officiating at the 6th Sarawak Mental Health Conference 2023, themed ‘Diversifying Mental Health Specialties in Borneo,’ at the Imperial Hotel here today (Aug 5).
 
Abang Johari added that the figures reported were quite worrying and needed urgent attention from all involved.
 
He stressed that priority must be given to the young generation while stating that they are the future leaders of the country, and hence their mental health and wellbeing are extremely crucial.
 
“Further, the NHMS 2019 reported depression among Malaysian adults by state, with Wilayah Persekutuan Putrajaya at 5.4 per cent, followed by Negeri Sembilan (5 per cent) and Perlis (4.3 per cent).
 
“By sociodemographic groups, male is reported at 2 per cent versus female at 2.6 per cent; rural (3.6 per cent) versus urban (1.9 per cent), and by household income, B40 (2.7 per cent), M40 (1.7 per cent), and T20 (0.5 per cent),” he said.
 
On a related note, he said the country’s population is ageing and Sarawak would be officially an ageing state by 2028.
 
“The population of senior citizens in Sarawak is increasing at a rate of 0.55 per cent each year since 2020 and constitutes 12.6 per cent of the state’s total population.
 
“Therefore, there will be issues in mental health that need extra attention and consideration by the state,” he said.
 
Deputy Premier Datuk Seri Dr Sim Kui Hian, Sarawak General Hospital Department of Psychiatry head Dr Siti Nor Aizah Ahmad, and Sentosa Hospital director and organising chairperson of the conference Dr Rosliwati Md Yusoff were among those present.