National Human Rights holds a meeting of experts to support the mental health sector and the rights of psychiatric patients

The National Council for Human Rights (NCHR) “Social Committee” held a meeting of experts to support the mental health sector and the rights of mentally ill patients, within the framework of the implementation of NCHR plan of action to protect and promote human rights, in the presence of Ms. Ambassador Moushira Khattab, President of NCHR, Dr. Wafa Benjamin, Secretary of the Social Rights Committee. Dr. Menen Abdel Maqsoud, Secretary General of the General Secretariat for Mental Health and Addiction Treatment at the Ministry of Health and Population, and Dr. Talaat Abdel Qawi, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Federation of Non-Governmental Associations and Institutions.

The meeting discussed ways to support the mental health sector in Egypt and benefit from the directives of the World Health Organization in this regard, after presenting the results of NCHR visits to mental health and addiction treatment hospitals that were carried out with the aim of inspecting the conditions of hospitals and patients and identifying the medical services provided to them, support for cooperation and coordination mechanisms between the executive authorities and civil society organizations to support the mental health sector was also discussed.

The meeting recommended the following:

- Preparing a memorandum on ways and mechanisms to support the psychiatry sector, to be presented to the national dialogue.

- Increasing the number of institutions, mental health hospitals and addiction treatment centers at the governorate level.

- Assigning media agencies to prepare programs to raise awareness of the protection of mental health, and to change the negative stereotype about mental illness.

- Intensifying work to reintegrate those recovering from mental illnesses into society, especially people who received treatment services in hospitals for long periods of time that may reach more than ten years, and rehabilitate their families to deal with them and meet their needs.

- NCHR to continue to conduct field visits to the headquarters of mental health hospitals and addiction treatment centers at the governorate level to inspect the conditions and make the necessary recommendations.

- The speedy launch of the presidential initiative to support the mental health of citizens, to support the mental health of different age groups, within the framework of the state's efforts to pay attention to the public health of citizens.