Women still diagnosed more than men, but CEO Ron Whelan says younger adults seeking help earlier shows positive shift in attitudes.
Picture: iStock
Frankly, we’re surprised that, in contemporary South Africa, there aren’t many more people with mental problems.
This country is fractured. The economy is wobbling. The prospects, for many, look bleak – especially when it comes to finding employment.
We see our underlying turmoil finding an awful outlet in our violence… against each other, against foreigners, against women and children.
But even more worrying – especially if you optimistically hope the future will see improvement – is the news that the very people who are our next generation of leaders and parents are themselves experiencing an unprecedented surge in mental health problems.
Discovery Health’s HealthTrend2026 report shows that mental health issues among people aged between 18 and 30 have surged by 80% in a decade.
In 2015, one in 12 young adults was claiming a mental health condition. By last year, that figure had risen to one in seven.
This is real information, too, gleaned from analysing more than 60 million life years of clinical and behavioural data across 2.7 million members of the scheme.
But, according to CEO Dr Ron Whelan, there is an upside to the story.
“More members, especially younger adults, are seeking help earlier. That is a positive shift. When mental health is identified and supported alongside physical health, outcomes improve and avoidable escalation is reduced.”
The Discovery group has noticed that, though there has been an increase in the prevalence of mental health problems, hospital admission rates for these actually declined by 11% over the same 10-year period. This, says the report, is “clear indication that intervention is working”.
Women are more likely to be diagnosed with mental conditions than men, which indicates that men are still the “cowboys who don’t cry”.
But many more people are being open about mental health, which is good for everyone.
