by Vu Kim Chung
7-10-1999
More than one in seven Vietnamese suffer from some form of psychological disorder, according to a Health Ministry survey. Depression and other forms of mental illness afflicted between 15 and 20 percent of the population, the survey, published in the Lao Dong (Labourer) newspaper, found.
The centre with the biggest problem is Ho Chi Minh City, which in recent years has been flooded by hundreds of thousands of migrant workers. Social workers said on October 1, 1999 they were not surprised by the findings, but conceded the scale of the problem was only just being recognised by international humanitarian organisations. Mark Kelly, of World Vision, blamed the problem on a combination of mental trauma from decades of war and the dramatic social change of recent years.
"There is a cultural expectation that people should not let off steam and that leads to an internalisation of problems," he said. "But the pace of change in Vietnam is very rapid. People now face a lot of uncertainty in terms of job and economic security. The family was the traditional support unit, but we are seeing an increasing number of broken families as members are forced to leave the family unit and live on the fringes of society in order to find work."
Foreign social workers said the extent of mental illness was reflected in the rising incidence of alcoholism, drug addiction and domestic violence.
"There is no social security system and so people are on their own - it is not surprising that their lives soon become consumed by despair," said Ingela Holmertz, social work adviser to the Red Cross in Hanoi. Ms Holmertz said her organisation planned to expand its programs and co-ordinate the efforts of other agencies to help the large number of people suffering psychological distress.
The survey found, however, that social stigma and superstition were strongly attached to mental illness and counselling was often rejected in favour of traditional healing.