Countries must invest more in mental health in hard times: WHO

Rich and poor countries alike must invest more in mental health care, especially during economic crises when rates of depression and suicide tend to rise, the World Health Organization (WHO)said on Tuesday.

One in 10 people worldwide has a mental health disorder but only one percent of the global health workforce is treating such illnesses, which are still widely stigmatized, the United Nations agency said.

"The resources devoted to mental health, financial as well as human resources, remain extremely small all over the world," Dr. Shekhar Saxena, Director of WHO's Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse, told . . .