KUALA LUMPUR: The Ministry of Health (MOH) will launch the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Action Plan next year in an effort to address the rising number of mental health cases, which have doubled between 2019 and 2023.

Deputy Health Minister, Datuk Lukanisman Awang Sauni, said the action plan is being developed in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

"The MOH has taken several steps to tackle mental health issues among students and teens, including setting up the National Centre of Excellence for Mental Health and the (ongoing) development of the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Action Plan."

Meanwhile, Lukanisman also explained that, based on studies conducted by the Ministry of Health (MOH), mental health problems are caused by many different factors, based on research by the Ministry of Health.

“For example, mental health can be affected by how cities are planned and built. High population density also plays a role. For instance, suicide rates, especially among teenagers, are higher in crowded housing areas. Because of this, we hope to work together with the Ministry of Housing and Local Government (KPKT) to create a healthier housing model,” he said.

In response, KKM has established the National Centre of Excellence for Mental Health (NCEMH) and is developing the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Action Plan (CAMH). This plan focuses on prevention, promotion, and care through education, empowering parents, and using digital platforms to expand access to mental health services. The success of these initiatives depends on effective implementation and community support.

Lee, who is also a member of the Mental Health Advisory Council, suggested increasing the number of trained counselors in schools to deal with sensitive issues more effectively while also providing students with coping strategies and providing emotional support as needed."Every school needs to have a sufficient number of trained counselors who can identify and help students struggling with stress, anxiety, depression or other mental health challenges," he said in a statement today.

He also suggested that mental health education be included in the curriculum as an effort to foster more understanding and reduce stigma towards mental health issues, and this initiative can help students identify signs of mental stress themselves or their peers and seek help at an early stage."Schools also need to hold workshops on stress and time management and mindfulness regularly to equip students with methods of dealing with academic and personal stress effectively," he said.

Lee said that all parties including the Ministry of Education, Non-Governmental Organizations and schools should work together in providing specialist training for school staff, conducting mental health screenings and providing access to help and other support resources to enable immediate help to be given to students facing crisis. - BERNAMA