05 Allama Rozan Firdaus Hortatory Text Task

Allama Rozan Firdaus
XI MIPA 10/05
Mental Health in Indonesia during Pandemic Era

The COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia started when an individual with symptoms was tested and
diagnosed on March 2, 2020. This became the first case in Indonesia and was directly
announced by President Joko Widodo. This led to many reactions from the general public,
including evaluations of the government's preparedness in handling the issue. The first case
compelled the government to look for clusters to prevent the spread of the disease. From
March to April, the number of confirmed cases increased to 5,923, and the number of deaths
rose to 520 people. This situation has caused psychological disorders including anxiety. In
addressing the outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that COVID-19 was
a pandemic and issued several protocols to support mental and social well-being during the
outbreak. Treatments in affected countries are focused on the physical health of infected
patients. Various efforts have been made by affected countries to find the cause and a vaccine.
A ton of informations, include from Whatsapp broadcast, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.
Make Indonesian more aware about pandemic. On the other hand, people get more anxiety.
Indonesian worry about their health and their future economics stability. Middle-Upper class
upper middle class are afraid of their health condition and force other people to obey the
protocol. The lower middle class fright about their economic condition. They are sometimes
disobeying the protocols just to earn some money.Many students also experience mental
disorders due to the pandemic.
Mental health expert dr. R. Surya Widya, Sp.KJ sees the cost of mental health therapy -
complete with treatment - is quite expensive. "Not cheap. For one consultation, the minimum
price is IDR 200 thousand, while the medicine can cost IDR 300 thousand,”. In line with Surya,
psychiatrist dr. Andri, Sp.KJ, FAPM also mentioned that the average fee charged to patients for
a 30-minute consultation is IDR 350.000.
This high cost is partly due to the limited number of medical personnel in the psychiatric field,
cases and treatments that are 'unique' from one patient to another. UIn Indonesia, mental
health is a thorny issue, but it doesn't get much attention. In the 2013 Riskesdas data, the
prevalence of mental emotional disorders as indicated by symptoms of depression and anxiety
was 6 percent for those aged 15 years and over or around 14 million people. Meanwhile, the
prevalence of severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, is 1.7 per 1,000 population or
about 400 thousand people. Moreover, the current millennial generation is suspected to be
more prone to depression and other mental health conditions. Unfortunately, the high number
of people with mental health disorders is not accompanied by the number of medical personnel
and facilities that balance the number of sufferers. Moreover, Indonesian is experiencing a
decline in income due to the pandemic.
There are other reasons as well, such as people simply having busy schedules and not taking
the time to acknowledge their mental health. However, it is very important to make mental
health a top priority, because leaving a mental illness untreated can have extremely negative
effects on the person. Some specific examples of these direct and indirect effects are the
condition worsening over time, physical health issues, financial problems, lack of job stability,
prison, being taken advantage of by others, and suicide. According to Clubhouse International,
mental illnesses are the cause of about 90% of suicides.
There are several solutions that would help to substantially decrease the number of people
with mental illnesses who are left untreated. Firstly, it is important for low-income families to
have access to health care. This will allow for people of all socioeconomic backgrounds to seek
treatment from a psychiatrist. Also, it is important to change the view mental illnesses in
society. Acceptance of mental illnesses will encourage people to seek help without feeling
ashamed. Lastly, The Government should make a policy about free psychological services in
pandemic era. Send psychologist to public health center and covering the cost of psychological
care at BPJS could be the solutions.

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Mental Health in Indonesia during Pandemic Era

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