Community mental health approaches can tackle Egypt’s psychiatric problems, yet the reliance on mental health hospitals is not only solidifying stigma but also hindering access to mental health services. On the 25th of January 2011, as Egyptian pro-democracy protestors marched towards Tahrir Square hoping to incite political change, another extraordinary scene of communal resilience was taking place elsewhere in the country. In the district of Kafr al Dawar, some 23 kilometers away from Alexandria, the local commune at the village of Kobania Abu Qir, had gathered to inaugurate Egypt’s first and only mental health center. “It was very special. This was the first time that those suffering from mental illness, their families, and community leaders, including the governor, the church priest, the local imam, the school headmaster and traditional healers had come together to decide and get involved with how mental health care could be provided in the community,” says Dr. Eman Souror, who has dedicated a lifetime towards working on alternative approaches to mental health care in Egypt. The former international officer at the Mental Health Secretariat and the lead psychiatrist who launched the center as part of an…
Are Psychiatric Hospitals in Egypt Hurting Mental Health Care?
December 13, 2016
