The STEPS survey on Risk Factors for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) conducted by World Health Organisation (WHO) has shown that nearly every one in five people suffers from depression.
The findings of the STEPS Survey will help the Maldives understand and improve NCD risk-factor prevention, healthcare management, monitoring, and surveillance. The STEPS Survey shows that nearly one in five people in Maldives suffer from depression. One in eight people worldwide suffers from a mental illness, according to the Ministry of Health. Mental illness has increased worldwide and in the Maldives since the outbreak of COVID-19.
The health ministry said many people do not know the best information about mental illnesses. Therefore, a national campaign to raise awareness about mental illness has now been launched. One of the main reasons why the ministry is increasing its efforts against the matter is that mental illness requires a long recovery period and a high cost for recovery. At the same time, the ministry said the increase in the proportion of people seeking treatment for mental illness has an adverse impact on the productivity of the entire country.
Furthermore, the ministry revealed the number of people suffering from mental illnesses, people suffering from disabilities due to illnesses, and people dying from such diseases is increasing day by day. The prevalence of mental illnesses is increasing in the Maldives and the government has been working to provide mental health treatment. As such, mental health coverage has been included under the Aasandha national health insurance scheme.