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China faces huge challenges in prevention and control of mental health problems, experts and officials warned Tuesday as the Ministry of Health revealed that mental and neural diseases account for 20 percent of national medical expenditure, making them the costliest ailments in China.

Mao Qun'an, spokesman of the ministry, pointed out the main issues of concerns as poverty, a lack of medical insurance among millions of sufferers, substandard medical service and low public awareness.

The true extent of the problem remains unknown since no nationwide investigation into the matter has been carried out. Ministry estimates rank at 30 million the number of Chinese youngsters under 17 suffering from depression, often due to heavy study burdens. The country also has 6 million epilepsy sufferers.

"China has a number of problems in tackling mental diseases, both in the medical treatment field and in intervention," Mao said at a press conference yesterday on the 15th World Mental Health Day, adding that a major difficulty comes from China’s lack of qualified psychiatrists.

The total number of professional mental doctors stands at 20,000. Among them, only 6,000 people have got undergraduate-level education, said Yu Xin, director of Peking University Institute of Mental Health.

In south China's Guangdong Province, this absence can be sorely felt.

"The province has only got about 2,000 psychiatrists, while 1.2 million people need mental health treatment," said Jia Fujun, director of Guangdong Mental Health Research Institute. This leaves poorly-equipped and understaffed mental hospitals coping with 600 patients per doctor.

"Mental hospitals are usually located in suburban, rural or even remote areas, because people regard mental health sufferers as dangerous and think they should be kept away."

Another major obstacle stopping patients receiving medical treatment is poverty with about 80 percent of rural residents and 40 percent of urbanites having no medical insurance.

For example, Beijing has 130,000 registered "severely psychotic" patients, but of these 70 percent have no access to free medicine and about 60 percent are not receiving medical care due to a lack of medical professionals and funds, the municipal health bureau revealed earlier this year.

"In China, HIV/AIDS and TB sufferers can get free medical treatment. But mental disease patients, who can put great pressure on and pose potential danger to their families and society, cannot receive free care," Yu said.

However, active steps are being taken to curb this trend with the central government launching a nationwide effort in early 2005 to help poor people suffering from serious mental illnesses receive care and treatment.

A total of 60 pilot sites, half of them in rural areas, have been established. In every site, 1,000 patients are registered and given free medical treatment.

A total of 10 million yuan (US$1.2 million) was invested in the program, which will end in December.

Moreover, as society continues to undergo dramatic change, many more mental problems will surface, Yu said. He noted that anxiety, depression, and other disorders caused by bad life habits including drug and alcohol abuse, are spreading.

Experts estimate that 100 million people in the country may be suffering from different mental diseases and disorders, Xinhua News Agency reported in late September.

In north China's Hebei Province, a survey conducted on 24,000 people aged over 18 showed the total incidence of "mental disease" stood 14 percent. More women were suffering than men, and more rural residents suffering than urbanites, providing a strong sociological basis to chart those demographics most in need of aid.

(China Daily October 11, 2006)