Highlights
Read about how COVID-19 pandemic exposes the lack of mental health professionals in the Philippines and how other health-related courses can provide help to people.
Overview
Aside from the common route of taking AB/BS Psychology for mental health interventions, here are the alternative ways on how to be a mental health practitioner.
1. Non-Mental Health Practitioners Undergoing the WHO Mental Health Gap Action Program
As doctors, nurses, caregivers, and other medical practitioners are equipped with the knowledge and skills through certification and evaluation programs on mental health, people can seek out their help instead of consulting psychiatrists, psychologists and psychiatric nurses from the very beginning. This program is implemented by the Department of Health to motivate the medical practitioners to include mental health in their professional practices.
2. Community Health Workers for Immediate Response at the Primary Care Level
Frontline community health workers, down to the barangay level, can provide counseling, psychosocial assistance, and medication through a series of capacity-building programs, especially for places in the Philippines that cannot easily access these mental health products and services. Courses that can be taken include BS Community Health and BS Public Health.
3. School Personnel for Multisectoral Approach on Mental Health
Teachers and school administration can implement school-based mental health programs to promote mental wellness among students. DOH has partnered with the Department of Education (DepEd) to help teachers and school administration with mental health intervention in schools. Efforts to care for the emotional well-being of children and young people can extend beyond the classroom and into the entire school.
Learn more about how the Philippines can scale up our human resources for mental health interventions through an Inquirer.net news article.
