Number of people affected by mental problems continues to grow

The percentage of people experiencing mental health issues continues to grow –with figures now hinting at one in three people being affected, Social Solidarity Minister Michael Falzon cautioned on Wednesday. The minister was speaking in a residence in Attard that hosts 10 women with mental health issues – the most recent addition to hostels run by Mount Carmel Hospital and Richmond Foundation, which is this year celebrating 25 years of service. “Mental health wellbeing can affect anyone, and international data shows that 25 per cent of the population experiences issues. That one person could be any of us, considering that the average family is made up of four people. Figures are now showing that we are inching towards one in three people being affected,” he said. The minister noted that while politicians had reached a common ground on the sector, they needed to be more innovative and fast-moving when it came to mental health issues. Earlier, former Social Policy Minister Louis Galea spoke of the struggles of mental health issues when the government was building a vision for the sector in the late 1980s and beginning of the 1990s. He recalled the neighbours’ skepticism and...