2006 10: 2006 10: Mental disorder among pre-teens rising

The Sun online. Local News. Tue, 03 Oct 2006

B. Suresh Ram

KUALA LUMPUR: Cases of mental disorder among children aged below 13 have been increasing in recent years, giving rise to concern.

Health Minister Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek said today (Oct 3, 2006) such disorders include autism, conduct disorder, depressive disorder, attention deficit, school refusal and schizophrenia. He said a study conducted 10 years ago showed that 13% of Malaysian children faced some sort of mental disorder or another.

"I am sure this figure is higher now despite there being no recent study on it," he said after opening a Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Clinic (MeKar) and transit home known as 'Anjung Kasih' in Selayang Hospital. Chua said since the one-stop centre - the first in the country - was operational, it has seen an increasing number of patients.

In 2002, the then psychiatric clinic saw 285 children and teens aged between two and 17 years. The number jumped to 354 in 2003, 543 in 2004 and 1,079 last year (2005).

"We would like expand but there is a barrier due to the limited expertise which we have in the field," he said. Both MeKar and Anjung Kasih were established in joint cooperation with National Welfare Foundation.