Like many other countries, Nigeria is facing a growing mental health crisis. The prevalence of mental health disorders leaves millions of individuals needing proper care and support. An article in the Guardian newspaper highlights a statement made by Taiwo Obindo, the President, the Association of Psychiatrists in Nigeria (APN) which mentions that 60 million Nigerians suffer from various mental health illnesses. The sad thing is that only 10 percent of them can access the appropriate care, the remaining 90 percent continue to battle this due to a variety of reasons such as
- Ignorance: Majority of people do not know about mental health illnesses; a lot of people are not yet diagnosed, and the rest are unaware of solutions.
- Myths and traditional beliefs
- Inadequate mental health facilities and mental health professionals.
- Stigma (no one wants to be labelled as Mad)
Mental health support has always been a priority for Bastion Health as the promise of quality healthcare is incomplete unless it is wholistic. Bastion health’s vision is to ensure that all Nigerians have access to the care they require when they require it.
In a significant move towards this, Bastion Health HMO partnered with Akoma Health, a tech-enabled mental health support platform to make mental health care and support accessible to all through an HMO plan. This partnership hopes to promote the adoption of mental health care, destigmatizing mental illness, and ensure comprehensive mental health services for anywhere around the world with a Bastion health plan.
Akoma Health has developed a comprehensive suite of mental health services tailored to the diverse needs of Nigerians. These services include counselling, therapy, psychiatric consultations, dedicated helplines, educational resources, holistic wellness initiatives provided by highly trained and licensed clinical psychologists and mental health professionals.