Question

Question: SHOULD THE GOVERNMENT INCREASE FUNDING FOR MENTAL HEALTH RESEARCH AND TREATMENT?

Report Format

• Date
• Purpose
• Background
• Current Situation
• Options / Recommendations
• Next Steps
• References
• Appendix – Literature review

Write a briefing note on the above mentioned topic.

• Summarize the background of your policy issue.
• Discuss the current situation of your policy issue.
• Using the research, you conducted write out some recommendations relevant to your topic and summarize them.
• Identify possible actions based on your recommendations.
• Identify next steps and submit the completed policy brief that will include issue statement, background, current situation, recommendations, action steps, and next steps.

Please please provide complete and correct answer. Maximum of two pages.

Answer 1

Ans) YES, THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD INCREASE FUNDING FOR MENTAL HEALTH RESEARCH AND TREATMENT.

Date: 15th October 2020

Purpose:

The main aim behind asking the government to increase funds for mental health research and treatment is to make the system and the public understand the severity of the matter. It aims to make everyone realise that mental illnesses are as bad as any physical ailment and sometimes even worse.

Background:

The attitude towards mental health has not always been progressive or acceptable. Many religions and cultures regard mental illness as a form of demonic possession or atonement of past sins and is considered a personal problem. These negative attitudes towards the mentally ill were prevelant till the 18th century.

Towards the 19th century, mental health centres and institutions became a little more common among the masses. This happened as the change in the environment of the mentally ill was stressed upon. However, these institutions instead of being a community oriented foundation began taking the form of isolated, torturous asylums. Due to low funds and staff the living conditions for the patients were inhumane. The diagnosis, experimentations like shock therapy and labotomy and treatments of all kind were at their peak.

After 1950, deinstitutionalization was stressed upon through widespread movements. Instead of institutions the patients were shifted to neighborhood community or local mental health homes.

Current Situation:

With increasing awareness about mental health, there is an increase in the people seeking treatment for these problems. People have also associated physical ailments with psychological problems like insomnia, stress, anxiety, etc.

However, the government not spending adequate funds on mental health research and treatment has deprived several financially unstable individuals from mental or psychological relief. In today's time, a psychiatrist charges a ton of money for a single session and one might procastinate focussing on their health considering it to be a less important want.

Recommendation:

In order to solve this problem of inadequate funds from the government for mental health, I recommend the creation of an organisation to collect funds for this cause by holding campaigns and programs. These funds can be donated to a different number of mental health homes and institutions or can collectively provided to the government as donation.

Next steps/ Action steps:

- Firstly, the funds must be increased contributing to mental research and treatment. More funds will contribute to more medicines and psychiatric meetings for financially unstable individuals.

- The government must give funds to provide good quality and quantity of food to the financially less stable. As eating well is found to be extremely helpful in controlling mental issues.

- The government should also promote physical excercise through campaigns and programs. Physical excercise provides motivation and stress relief to an individual.

- The government must use means of communication like social media to promote individuals to reach out to them for mental health and treatment so that their services can be made available to the maximum number of people.