Asido Foundation, a not-for-profit Mental Health Advocacy organisation say, it is embarking on providing treatment and rehabilitation for at least two homeless persons with mental illness every quarter as part of its effort to give them hope.
Founder, Asido Foundation, Dr Jibril Abdulmalik said under the project tagged Project Hope 2 by 2 by 2, a minimum of N2 million is to be raised over a period of two months to cover the treatment and rehabilitation for the period of their admission to either a teaching or state psychiatry hospital for about two months.
Abdulmalik said although having individuals with mental illness roam the streets has become a feature in Nigeria, it is still fundamentally wrong because they also have a right to quality healthcare as defined by the United Nation’s third Sustainable Development Goal that advocates health for all.
He declared, “For us at Asido Foundation, we know that we cannot take off everybody on the street with mental illness and rehabilitate them. What we are trying to do is to give hope, the hope that no matter how long the person has been ill or have been on the street, with the right treatment and support, they can recover and return to normal productive lives.
“We shouldn’t think that any body’s situation is hopeless or is no longer redeemable. So, we are to collaborate with Ministries of Health, Women and Social Welfare and the law enforcement agents to take these Nigerian citizens off the street and get them to the hospital where they will receive quality care for their conditions.”
Dr Abdulmalik said after they have recovered, they are to be reconnected with their families and where there are no families, to government rehabilitation homes.
He added, “the idea is once they have recovered, they should be able to return to normal productive lives. So it is not like we will take on the responsibility of paying for their treatment and all their needs forever.
“At UCH, Ibadan, we have had successful rehabilitation of people in the past in a family support programme initiated by Professor Oye Gureje. They had gone on to do well in business, so we should not look at it that they will never be able to stand on their feet or achieve anything for themselves in life.”
The consultant psychiatry urged Nigerians in the New Year to maintain good mental health by taking time to rest, be positive about life, irrespective of stressors in the nation, and be kind to their person, including family members and colleagues at work and avoiding drug abuse.
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