Sam* is 22 years old. Ever since he was a child, his mother suffered from mental health issues. Eventually, even he started demonstrating severely challenging behaviour. Sam was placed in a residential programme for children with severely challenging behaviour. Throughout his adult life, Sam’s condition now fluctuates and, periodically, he has to be admitted to Mount Carmel Hospital. He now lives in Mosta with 10 other individuals, who are supported by professionals on a 24/7 basis. Sam is enrolled in an educational course, which will lead him to the career has always dreamt of.
Amy* lives in Attard. She is a wife and a mother, who spent several years in Mount Carmel due to her acute mental illness. Over time, Amy’s condition stabilised and she no longer needed hospitalisation. She lives together with another nine women leading a life similar to each one of us – carrying out the activities of daily living, going out with family, going shopping. Amy has managed to save up to travel abroad for a weekend break together with her housemates. They will be accompanied and supported by staff there too.
The homes at Mosta and Attard are run by the Richmond Foundation. Had the foundation not opened these houses both Sam and Amy would have had nowhere to go except Mount Carmel Hospital.
For the past 30 years, Richmond Foundation provided a caring and healing environment to those needing such help. It has given people back their lives. Richmond’s loving service kindles hope.
This piece is not only about Sam and Amy. It is also about you who can be one of the 120,000 of Maltese who suffer from one mental health disorder or another. It could be you whose brother, sister, mother, father or other relative or just an acquaintance has a mental problem.
Our brain, like other organs of our body, can malfunction from time to time. It could be stress at work, a disastrous family situation, an unexpected piece of bad news. It could be the tension caused by the Russian war against Ukraine. It could be the pressure exerted on your family budget by the spiralling inflation. There are so many factors that can trigger a minor or not so minor disfunction.
Take COVID-19 for example. The pandemic gave rise to a lot of anxiety. People felt isolated from their family and friends, parents were stressed juggling working from home and home schooling, elderly people became increasingly lonely. This eventually led to depressive symptoms. Richmond’s 1770 helpline became a 24/7 service upon the government’s request and financial contribution in April 2020. From an initial 90 calls per month in January 2020, these increased steadily to 800 calls in July 2022 as more people are realising and accepting that they need help and discovering that help is only a phone call away.
If a service is being provided efficiently why play around with vulnerable people to scrounge a few thousand euros a year? Vulnerable people should not be treated like cattle- Fr Joe Borg
All sorts of people call anytime and receive help 24/7. The service is effective and efficient, so much so that it is also ISO certified.
The government has just announced that it will be running its own 24/7 phone helpline. Instead of competing with NGOs, would it not be better for the government to use its psychology officers within wards where their services are very scarce or in some new service which is not being provided by anyone? Why risk dismantling an efficient service being provided by an NGO?
Changing houses is a very stressful experience for all, much more for vulnerable people like Sam and Amy. They now risk having to change house every two or three years if the government insists on awarding contracts for these services to the lowest bidder. If a service is being provided efficiently why play around with vulnerable people to scrounge a few thousand euros a year? Vulnerable people should not be treated like cattle.
Sam, Amy and the 120,000 Maltese suffering from some form of mental health problems suffer more because they are still being stigmatised by society. Such stigma involves the negative or discriminatory attitudes that many in society have about mental illness. Sometimes, this leads to self-stigma. People with mental health issues can develop negative attitudes about themselves and their own condition, including internalised shame. The media have a very important role and responsibility to fight this stigma.
The title of this piece may have surprised many as we usually associate those words with the struggle to achieve truth and justice for Daphne Caruana Galizia and her family. I purposely used those words as truth and justice, like human rights, are not to be restricted to individuals or groups. Either there is truth and justice as well as human rights for all or for none. Whenever individuals or groups are denied justice all of us are being denied justice.
Many do not know the truth about mental disorders and about how people with such disorders are sometimes treated by society. Their deficient knowledge increases stigma and lack of interest which, in turn, enables politicians to put mental health on the back burner. Thus, justice is being denied to the 120,000 Maltese suffering from some form of mental disorder. We must fight to change all of this.
* Names and details changed to respect privacy of the person.
Fr Joe Borg is a member of the board of trustees of Richmond Foundation but this op-piece reflects only his opinion.