Harare: ,12 December 2015: The Friendship Bench - a brief intervention delivered by supervised lay health workers who have received training in problem solving therapy - a Cognitive-behavioural intervention geared to improve an individual’s ability to cope with stressful life experiences was hailed as a locally developed innovation in the delivery of mental health services in Zimbabwe. Delegates attending a one day national stakeholders meeting on Mental Health in Zimbabwe conquered that the Friendship Bench is a cost effective and relevant strategy which can be adapted in other settings.

The meeting was well attended by  officials from the Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC) from all levels, partners, academia, some  donors  and representatives of beneficiaries of the Friendship Bench project. The Permanent Secretary for Health and Child Care was represented by the Director of    Family and Reproductive Health (FRH) in MoHCC. The Mental Health Innovation Network as well as its  core partners World Health  Organization (WHO) and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical  Medicine were represented.   Dr. David Okello, the WHO  Representative in Zimbabwe led the WHO Country team. Also in attendance was Dr Daniel Chisholm and Dr Fahmy Hanna from the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse (MSD) at the WHO Headquarters. The meeting was made possible with resource support from Grand Challenges Canada, which was also represented.

A common theme from the meeting was ‘There is no health without mental health’. Dr Okello highlighted that Zimbabwe has together with the other WHO Member States endorsed the WHO’s Comprehensive mental health action plan 2013-2020 and should therefore make strides to improveaccess to mental health care and support services in line with the plan. Dr Okello however, applauded the Friendship Bench as a noble innovation, although further noting that mental health services are over concentrated in urban areas. He concluded by recommitting WHO to the mental health cause. “WHO will continue to provide technical support to MOHCC as well as to resource mobilise for the roll out of the mhGAP in the country.” Said Dr Okello.

In his opening remarks read on his behalf by Dr Bernard Madzima, the Director FRH in MoHCC,    Brigadier Dr Gerald Gwinji, the Permanent Secretary for Health and Child Care, highlighted that  mental health conditions and substance abuse have become an important issue in Zimbabwe. He also highlighted community based mental health care and support as an important way of ensuring access to mental health services and in the same vein applauded Dr Dixon Chibanda for initiating and leading work on the Friendship Bench. He further noted the need for task-shifting  as well as integration of mental health services with other health services.

The Mental Health Services Manager in the Department of Mental Health Services in MoHCC, Mrs Eneti Siyame gave an overview picture of mental health services in Zimbabwe. She     highlighted that there are six units       offering specialized mental health care services, whilst in and out patient services are also available at provincial and district level. She noted that services being offered have gradually improve over the years although notable gaps remains. Among other gaps, she highlighted that the Psychiatrist-Patient ratio in Zimbabwe  is one to one million    population  and the  Mental health Act of 1996 needs to be updated.

The stakeholders meeting was part of a series of events supported by WHO, spanning a week.  Activities  included site visits of the Friendship Bench project to provide technical support on effective policy engagement and communication and an orientation meeting on the mhGAP Intervention Guide for mental, neurological and substance use disorders in non-specialized health settings for multi-disciplinary cadres working on mental health in Zimbabwe. The orientation meeting will be held on 11th December 2015 and will be facilitated by Dr Fahmy Hanna from the Department of  Mental Health and Substance Abuse (MSD) at the WHO Headquarters. It will aim to build additional capacity in the implementation of WHO’s mhGAP programme in Zimbabwe and will be followed by a national level adaptation process in 2016.

Reflecting on the week long mission to Zimbabwe, Dr Daniel Chisholm noted that; Mental health is  evidently not a pressing priority issue in the country, and will continue to struggle to attract the     funding needed to scale-up services, but WHO stood out as an organization that is there to listen and help, and one that can make a real difference through its ability to convene stakeholders, interact closely with key decision-makers in government and call upon technical resources and support. “We are very encouraged by the events and outcomes of the mission, and will assist in any way to promote and develop integrated mental health policy and planning in the country.” Concluded Dr Chisholm

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For more information, please contact:

 JULIAS Wendy, Email: juliasw [at] who.int (juliasw[at]who[dot]int)