governments at various levels low in the area of psychiatric and
mental health care.
According to him, some medical scholars have revealed that in a
population of 160 million or thereabout, "64 million Nigerians suffer
from one form of mental illness or the other deserving attention".
Nebo spoke as a guest lecturer at the 2nd Public Lecture organized by
the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Enugu in collaboration with the
West African College of Nursing, on the theme 'Psychiatric and Mental
Health in Nigeria: Challenges and Prospects'.
"I will confess that while Government has built modern diagnostic
centres, dialysis and ophthalmological centres, and constructed more
than 710 Primary Health Care Centres throughout our political wards in
Enugu State, we are only beginning to give priority towards optimizing
and modernizing our psychiatric Mental Health Institutions in the
State to meet required demands."
He identified causes of mental illness to include genetic composition,
early development, neurological and psychological experiences and
environmental stresses.
"The belief that many Nigerians seem to hold that mental disorder is a
result of supernatural forces and, therefore, only responds to cure
through traditional practices and supernatural incantations, must give
way and face the realities of modern conditions, which in fact,
produce the stresses that lead to different level of mental
conditions," Nebo said.
-INFORMATION NIGERIA
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