Reply from MOH

20th March 2024 Dear Mr Raymond, Thank you for your suggestions on 9 March 2024, received by the Ministry of Health regarding the need to improve mental health awareness and reduce stigma of mental illnesses. We wish to share that this is a focus area of the National Mental Health and Well-Being Strategy which was launched last year, and there have been ongoing efforts to address this. One example is the Health Promotion Board (HPB)’s “It’s OKAY to Reach Out” campaign in 2021 which strived to normalise conversations on mental health and encourage individuals to seek help when needed. The Beyond the Label (BTL) Movement started by the National Council of Social Service (NCSS) since 2018 is another campaign that raises mental health awareness and combats stigma. We are also enhancing mental health literacy and building resilience among our youth through the Character and Citizenship Education curriculum in schools. Students are taught to overcome stigma and show care, respect and empathy to all. In Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs), students are trained to provide emotional support to their peers in mental distress. Today, over 48,000 frontline personnel such as the police, school teachers and other frontline personnel have received training to detect and support individuals with mental health issues. Such training would be extended to more segments of our population to further strengthen our community support networks and our collective resolve as a society to overcome stigma. We appreciate the time taken to share your concerns with us. Thank you and we wish you good health. Yours sincerely, Siti Hanom for Quality Service Manager Ministry of Health, Singapore

Silver Ribbon Singapore Porche Poh who is their Executive Director wrote a timely press letter to the Straits Times Forum. I followed up with my views as well. Unfortunately, it was not published, as I had expected. Here is my article: Letter to the forum: Adopt a more compassionate, caring and understanding approach to mental illness I agree wholeheartedly with Silver Ribbon Singapore’s Porsche Poh that the police must be competent in handling persons with mental disorders (Ensure police are competent in managing mental health crises, Mar 9). As a staunch mental health advocate who has helped my late wife through her battle with schizophrenia for four decades and many other psychiatric patients and their caregivers, I have found that when empathy, understanding and kindness are woven in, there is a good chance of patients being able to move on in life. There is a dire need to be mindful of the tone, tempo and attitude when handling persons struggling with mental health issues. There may be relatives who are in denial about a loved one’s mental illness. This is one reason why it is crucial for public education on mental health issues to be intensified in all sectors of the population, including schools and tertiary institutions. Lack of knowledge about mental illness can contribute to unintentional negativity. Unfortunately, mental illness is often viewed as a shameful illness which is why many sufferers do not want to seek the much-needed treatment. Members of Parliament need to carry out periodic home visits to ensure that residents are able to cope with the cost of living, health issues and job losses. Whenever persons with mental disorders are brought in by the police either from endangering their lives and those around them, society will view them as troublemakers. This will further deepen the stigma against mental illness. Bear in mind that an inclusive society is one that supports people, provides opportunities and celebrates diversity without discriminating or having prejudiced beliefs against persons with special needs. RAYMOND ANTHONY FERNANDO