Although we live in Canada, and most people have access to basic healthcare assistance, we don’t really take into account the amount of people that are impoverished living with a mental illness. According to the Canadian Mental Health Association Ontario (2007), people with a mental illness are often living in chronic poverty. They also state that it can be vice versa, in which poverty is a large factor for physical and mental illness. As if the social stigma associated with living in poverty wasn’t bad enough, when most people imagine a mental illness, they think of crazy whackos that are in a straightjacket talking to themselves; but that’s not the case.
Mental
health is defined as “emotional,
behavioral, and social maturity or normality” according to Medical News
Today (2009). The World Health Organization (WHO) states that especially in
low-middle income families, mental health services are severely underfunded,
which is a cause-and-effect relationship with multigenerational poverty;
Approximately 2.4 million Canadians suffer from a mental disorder in a given
year, which is 21.3% of the population, and most people (79%) don’t even know
they have it (Canadian Mental Health Association Alberta 2011).
Now you’re wondering what the
huge deal is with mental illnesses and how it relates to multigenerational
poverty. The truth is, the programs to treat mental health, which is usually
caused by poverty, in Canada is severely lacking. The total economic cost of mental
disorders that are treated and not treated annually in Canada is 14 billion
dollars (Canadian Mental Health Association Alberta 2011). The Marxist view of
poverty and mental illnesses would illustrate collectivism and equality for all
(Straka 2012), as people with an illness are still people who want to
work, but aren’t given a chance. The benefits given to the people in need would
help lower the deficit for mental illnesses and would be able to treat people
to help them back up to a healthy state of being. Marxism also states that one
class owns most of the wealth, and they want to spread it around so people will
be able to afford the necessary healthcare to get back into the work force
(Straka 2012).
For people living in poverty
with a mental illness, it is extremely difficult to break the cycle and
discrimination that you’re faced in everyday life. According to the World
Health Organization (2010), “people with mental disabilities encounter restrictions
in the exercise of their political and civil rights, and in their ability to
participate in public affairs.” This explains that people with a mental illness
often don’t get a say in the role of the government and who gets elected. And
if their voices are silenced, who is going to stand up for them?
Organizations
and policies exist to help these citizens living in poverty such as the Convention
on the Rights of People with Disabilities. According to WHO (2011), it will
improve the lives of people living with a mental disability by carrying out
specific actions including:
- Mental health services should be integrated systematically into all health services including primary level care.
- Mental health issues should be integrated into broader health policies, programmes, and partnerships.
- Mental health should be included in services during and after emergencies.
- Mental health issues should be taken into account within social services and housing development.
- Mental health issues should be mainstreamed into education, and children with mental and psychosocial disabilities should be supported to access schooling.
- Employment and income generating opportunities must be created for people with mental and psychosocial disabilities.
- Human rights should be strengthened by developing policies and laws that protect the rights of people with mental and psychosocial disabilities.
- There should be investment in developing the capacity of people with mental and psychosocial disabilities to participate in public affairs, including the support of service user-led movements.
- Development actors should create mechanisms to involve people with mental and psychosocial disabilities in decision-making processes.
As we grow into
a new age where people are realizing the power that they have, I believe we can
make a difference if our voices are loud enough. You just have to be the one to
be able to grab their attention.
-Spencer Edgar
References:
Canadian Mental
Health Association Alberta (2011). Mental Illness in Canada. Retrieved from:
http://alberta.cmha.ca/mental_health/statistics/#.UKXB_Ia9e5U
Medical News
Today. (2009). What is Mental Health? What is Mental Disorder? Retrieved
from: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/154543.php
Straka, S. (2012). Social Welfare Theory [PowerPoint Slides]. Retrieved from http://www.courses.algomau.ca
World Health
Organization. (2010). Mental Health, Poverty and Development. Retrieved
from: http://www.who.int/mental_health/policy/development/en/index.html
Your article was very informative. I totally agree with the Marxist view of mental illness. Afterall they are still human beings. Just because they have a mental illness does not mean they can not be productive members of society.
ReplyDeleteWe should continue to be "loud" with these issues of mental illness.
Jen M
Spencer,
ReplyDeleteYour post was very interesting. I like how you tied in mental illnesses with poverty, as it is an issue that I don't see being brought to the public's attention very often. I know a person who has severe social anxiety, to the point that they cannot even leave their house, making it almost impossible to find empoyment or even seek medical care, which is very sad. I liked the marxist approach you took on this issue and I agree with Jen when she sais that this does not mean that they can not be productive members of society. I too can imagine the stigma that could come with being in poverty while living with a mental illness.
-Lyndsay
It is interesting to read how many marginalized groups often struggle with more than one issue such as poverty and mental illness, as you stated in your blog. After doing these blogging assignments I have noticed that the many social issues that affect the vulnerable populations that everyone has been blogging about are interlinked in many ways, making it extremely hard for people to move forward and out of these marginalized groups. From doing research for my group ‘Mental Illnesses in Canada’, many people who live in poverty do not seek proper mental health services. Although health care in Canada is free, paying for medications are not and those living in poverty may not be able to afford prescriptions because they are not covered under employee benefits and cannot afford private health care insurance. This is extremely problematic making it hard for people to get the proper care needed to move forward with their life and manage their mental illness.
ReplyDeleteKristen – Mental Illness Group