People suffering from mental illnesses deserve protection and support in society to help them get cured as soon as possible.

Dr Yvonne Kayiteshonga, the head of mental health division at Rwanda Biomedical Center (RBC), who was last week speaking during the World Mental Health Day in Musanze District, said families with mentally ill persons should do their best to ensure the victims receive timely medical care.

On how people with mental ailments are handled when they show first symptoms, she warned against tying them with ropes but rather family members and local leaders should look for ways to help them.

"Nobody deserves harassment and for people with mental illness, it is a special case as they have lost some of their senses and are weak. Harassing them is not required,” Kayiteshonga said.

She added that the new regulations protecting people with mental illnesses are being formulated and would be out in the near future.

The regulations will protect people with mental illness from harassment and spell out ways of how people with mental diseases can be treated, Kayiteshonga said.

Kayiteshonga attributed most cases of mental illness in the country to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.

She said research conducted in 2009 revealed that 26 per cent of Rwandans suffer from both trauma and depression. But there is a plan for the ministry to do research to show current figures.

Helping victims with medical care

Kayiteshonga encouraged families with mentally ill to work with community health workers and local leaders to help them receive medical care.

Mental health is among the primary healthcare concern that is addressed at community level.

Community health workers were trained on how to help people showing signs of mental problems, she said.

"We put more efforts in service delivery and advise families to take victims to hospital in case they show abnormal signs, after that we teach them how they can live with those affected because people with mental health problems are not only treated in hospitals but also need care from their families,” Kayiteshonga said.

She said community health workers provide primary care and follow up on how the patients adhere to medical prescriptions.

Kayiteshonga also said there is a decrease in the number of people with mental illnesses on the streets due to the many efforts in place by the government and other partners.

However, some people who talked to The New Times said it is hard to approach a person showing mental problems as they are aggressive and in some cases it requires physical force to catch them before they are taken to hospital.

Online information shows that mental illnesses are of different types and degrees of severity. Some of the major types are depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, bipolar mood disorder, personality disorders, trauma and eating disorders.