Health
A Moment in Mental Health
My Q&A with Dr. Alicia Malcolm
- How many clients are you serving at this time or how many mentally challenged individuals are registered with the Department?
The Department of Mental Health and Substance Dependence sees an average of 1,100 persons in our clinics per year. This number has steadily increased as persons become more aware of the importance of taking care of their mental health.
- What are the top three or five leading mental health issues for TCI?
The leading cause for consultations are for Anxiety/ stress related disorders and Mood Disorders such as Depression.
- How many do you believe are going undiagnosed and therefore unsupported?
Based on psychological research, there does not appear to be a significant difference in the overall prevalence of mental health disorders between the genders. However, there are some noticeable differences in the types of mental illnesses that men and women struggle with. Some more common mental disorders in men include:
- Do you think or do we have stats to show if mental health is a larger issue for men or women?
Antisocial personality disorders. For women, common mental disorders include: Depression, Anxiety and PTSD.
Women present more frequently in our clinics than men. However, this does not mean that mental health issues are larger in females. Typically across the globe you’ll find that men are less likely than women to seek help for a mental health condition.
- How many are getting treatment/care/support?
It is unclear exactly how many people across the nation have undiagnosed mental health conditions. However, our encouragement is that anyone who is experiencing any sort of mental or emotional issues that create impairment in their daily functioning contact us so that we can assess and provide the necessary intervention. On average we provide treatment and care for about 15- 20 in our treatment abroad program and as mentioned previously an average of 1,100 in country per year.
- What is the status of the Mental Health Facility; seems it has been stagnant for many years now?
The mental health facility project is ongoing and it is anticipated to open early next year (2022). Recruitment of staff is actively being done while remaining construction works are being completed.
- I notice that your budget has nearly doubled in 10 years; what does this mean for Mental Health in TCI?
The increase in the budget reflects a number of things but in essence it means that there will be additional mental health professionals available to provide care and treatment for clients. In addition, new and improved forms of medication are being utilized with patients who may have become treatment resistant.
- How many mental health doctors do we have country wide? What is your team size?
The mental health team is currently comprised of eight clinicians: 4 doctors and 4 therapists. There are 12 new positions that have been added and recruitment is being done to fill them.
- How many children with mental health issues; and what kind?
On average 30 – 40 children are seen in our clinics per year. The top three mental health issues are Depression, Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Trauma Related- Sexual Abuse.
- What step would make the biggest impact on an improved delivery of care/service to mental health in Turks and Caicos from your experience?
Some steps that will assist in the continued improvement of mental health care delivery in TCI include: building local capacity through ongoing training of general practitioners; completion of mental health facility to serve persons with acute and chronic mental health conditions; ensuring greater access to services e.g through the continued use of telehealth services and strengthening community outreach and educational programs.
Dr. Alicia B. Malcolm (Psy.D.) became Director of the Department of Mental Health & Substance Dependence of the Turks and Caicos Islands in 2013.