Mental health: Ghana is sitting on a time bomb- Akwasi Osei

Chief Executive of the Mental Health Authority, Dr. Akwasi Osei says Ghana is sitting on a time bomb if the deplorable situation at the country's premier mental health facility, Accra Psychiatric Hospital persist.

According to him, failure to address the long standing problem of funding is having a debilitating effect on the facility which will soon lead to its collapse.

His comments come in the wake of suspension of OPD and emergency services at the Accra Psychiatric Hospital.

In an exclusive interview with JoyNews, Dr. Akwasi Osei expressed disappointment at the state of mental health in the country.

"This is a security issue, if they close down as they did and we cannot admit patients... on the average we admit 10 to 15 patients a day and they see about 300 patients on outpatient basis," he said.

He added if these patients are not attended to and are left to wander on the streets they may become a danger to the society.

He said until full implementation of the Mental Act 846 which was passed in 2012 takes effect, the country will continue to experience disruptions in mental health care delivery.

"Just as we say children are a barometer of what happens at home. Accra Psychiatric Hospital is a barometer of our mental health care situation in the country. If they are agitating it is a reflection of the fact that we have not given adequate care to mental health.

"Until we get to the point of implementing the law fully, these problems will exist," he stated.