MoPH launches mental health awareness campaign

Oct 12, 2020

Building on its earlier efforts to promote mental wellbeing, the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) together with Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC), Sidra Medicine and Naufar, has launched a mental health awareness campaign.

Under its theme ‘Are you OK?’ the campaign seeks to encourage people to communicate more openly about their mental health.

“In today’s busy world it is easy to become overwhelmed with the pressures of daily life. Everyone experiences feelings of stress, anxiety, and sadness at times throughout their lives and these feelings usually pass quickly. But for some people, these feelings persist and negatively impact on their mental health and emotional wellbeing,” said Mahmoud al-Raisi, chair of the National Taskforce for Mental Health and Wellbeing and Chief of the Continuing Care Group at HMC.

However, one of the main challenges that people undergoing psychological distress is seeking help due to the stigma associated with it. This stigma affects people’s willingness to seek professional support, Dr al-Raisi pointed out.

“This is why we have launched a national campaign to raise awareness of mental health and wellbeing and to reduce the stigma. The campaign is being run under the theme “Are you OK?’ and aims to encourage you to ask this simple question to people who you believe may be experiencing stress or anxiety,” he explained.

The campaign adds to several other activities taking place around the world in recognition of World Mental Health Day.

On October 10, some prominent landmarks across Qatar were lit up in green to stress the importance of the day. The color green signifies the ongoing awareness of mental health to tackle the stigma linked to it.

Prominent landmarks across Doha were today lit up in green to mark World Mental Health Day 2020. Thank you to The Torch, MIA, Katara and Ashghal for their support of this important day. @QtrMIA @kataraqatar @AshghalQatar @TheTorchDoha pic.twitter.com/w9QeUDmzxY
— وزارة الصحة العامة (@MOPHQatar) October 10, 2020

Deputy National Lead for Mental Health and Wellbeing and Executive Director of Operations at PHCC, Dr Samya Ahmad al-Abdulla highlighted that as many people are impacted by the COVID-19 crisis this year, the significance of the day is even more.

“So it is now more important than ever that people feel comfortable talking openly about feelings of stress, anxiety and sadness. By asking ‘Are you OK?’ and asking in the right way, you can help to start a conversation with someone who may be finding it difficult to speak openly about their struggles,” she said.

Chair of the Mental Health Service at HMC, Dr Majid al-Abdulla said that experiencing feelings of stress, anxiety and sadness is common and people should not feel ashamed about this.

“It is important that people are aware that many of us will experience these feelings at some point in our lives. We need to all play our part in creating an environment where mental health is talked about as openly as physical health. Simply talking about your feelings can help to relieve the pressure and begin the road to recovery.”