Health Minister Wants All Hospitals to Handle Mental Disorders, Not Just Mental Hospitals
Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin is asking every hospital in Indonesia to be able to treat patients with mental health issues. He said mental health care can't just rely on mental hospitals (RSJ) because the public needs a much wider reach of services.
The government is setting up a tiered mental health handling system, from community health centers all the way to hospitals. This is needed so that people experiencing mental disorders can get treatment that matches their condition and how severe it is.
This plan lines up with the results of mental health screenings the government did under President Prabowo Subianto's instruction. In 2025, around 70 million people have been screened, and about 7 million are showing signs of mental disorders, like anxiety issues, depression, and even schizophrenia.
These findings gotta be backed up by ready health facilities since each condition needs a different approach and care. With the tiered system, they hope mental health treatment won't be centralized only at specialized mental hospitals, so all health facilities can give the right kind of care.
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It makes me think instead, that a lot of community health centers in remote areas are still short on basic meds. How're they gonna handle mental health issues if even vitamins are often out of stock? I hope they seriously prepare the staff too, not just the buildings.