WHO: About 14.9% of Vietnamese suffer from mental disorders

A total of 14.9 percent among Vietnamese population suffer from mental disorders, said a report by World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday. The report was released at a forum for international research and education network on mental health in Asia-Pacific co-held by WHO and Vietnam's Ministry of Health in Vietnam's capital Hanoi on Monday. The most common psychiatric disorders in Vietnam include schizophrenia, epilepsy, depression, dementia, mental retardation, alcoholism, drug abuse, and adolescent conduct disorder, said the report. Addressing the forum, Vietnamese deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Viet Tien said the to-be-established network on mental health in Asia-Pacific aims to improve life quality of psychosis sufferers by strengthening, developing mental health services. Nowadays, only a few countries can well organize management system of mental health care. This can have impacts on socio- economic stability and development of each country. In some cases, many serious crimes are people with mental disorders, causing difficulties in convicting their wrongdoings, Vietnam's state-run news agency VNA quoted Tien as saying. The forum drew participants from countries and regions such as China, China's Hong Kong, Cambodia, Brunei, Indonesia, Mongolia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Laos, and Thailand among others. During the two-day forum, participants are expected to share experiences and discussed priorities in research and treatment of mental health to boost regional mental health care network.