December is the time of the year when companies close their books. They take stock of their achievements as well as failures. Well-managed companies look beyond the short-term profits and are interested in assets that do not appear on their balance sheet – their employees and their families.

If I were to choose the most positive news for our country in 2018, I would pick the recent launching of a White Paper on a mental health strategy that will be given priority in the National Health Strategy 2020-2030.

Health Minister Chris Fearne quoted the first Director General of the WHO, Brock Chisholm, who said that, “Without mental health, there can be no true physical health.”

As a nation, we too need to take stock of the assets that do not feature in our GDP and other economic statistics – thousands of men and women who struggle to cope with their, or a relative’s, mental health challenges.

Mental illness is more common than cancer, diabetes or heart disease. Mental Health Commissioner John Cachia says that 20 per cent of the working population suffers from mild to moderate mental health conditions. This incidence is in line with statistics in Western countries.

In many cases, mental illness makes daily life difficult to handle. In the workplace, it is a cause of low productivity and low morale in the workforce. Quite commonly people suffering from a mental illness lose their jobs and become a burden on their families and themselves. When local trade unions recently declared that good health is good business, they were giving sound advice to employers who need to look beyond achieving financial targets and market share.

The stress factors in modern life are countless. Young couples each holding a full-time job while raising young children are perhaps the most prone to suffer some form of mental distress. Middle-aged people, especially women, often have to care for ageing parents as morbidity starts to affect older people. Financial constraints leave no option for these people but to cope with career responsibilities and caring for their loved ones.

Young couples each holding a full-time job while raising young children are perhaps the most prone to suffer some form of mental distress

Mental health problems affect people of any age, income, educational level, race and cultural background. However, this is a subject that very rarely grabs the headlines, as the media is more interested in the behaviour and misbehaviour of politicians, rather than the day-to-day issues and challenges faced by ordinary people.

Families affected by a mental health issue of one of their members are often reluctant to ask for the help or even moral support from friends. The subject of mental illnesses is still a taboo in our society. They frequently resort to medication to help them cope with the symptoms of their stressful lives.

The media needs to dedicate more space to well-being features to support those going through hard times because of mental health problems. People with mental health problems can still lead a useful life. For instance, we need to understand that even celebrities like Mariah Carey, Mel Gibson and Catherine Zeta-Jones suffer from bipolar disorder, a common mental health condition. Of course, those suffering from some form of mental illness may only want to live as normal a life as possible. They can do this if their families, employers, the public health system and voluntary organisations support their efforts to get the treatment that suits them best.

A major concern is the spread of mental health problems among children. The State needs to invest more in child psychologists who are trained to identify mental health problems by observing the behaviour of children in school environments. Our children’s health is the future of our society.

I am grateful to the thousands of medical, mental health professionals, volunteers in charities, and ordinary people who care for a relative with mental health problems for working with dedication to improve the well-being of so many people.

The refurbishment of Mount Carmel Hospital is a tangible sign that mental health issues are being prioritised in the public health agenda. Unfortunately, there will always be cases of individuals with acute mental health problems that are best treated in a specialised hospital.

The road ahead to improve mental health management is a tortuous one because we have underinvested in this sector for several decades.

The Health Minister has the right background and aptitude to ensure this strategy will begin to be implemented meticulously.

Now is the time for Maltese society to be sensitised to the adverse effects of untreated mental health illnesses.

johncassarwhite@yahoo.com