The school of public health of Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) organised a public talk on World Mental Health on October 1 at the IUB campus in Bashundhara.
Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, Bir Bikram, energy advisor to the Prime Minister, attended the programme as the chief guest.
Prof Vikram Patel, professor, Public Health Foundation of India, delivered the key-note speech.
Shamim Matin Chowdhury, founding chairperson of Beautiful Bangladesh and Atif Rahman, professor of child psychiatry, University of Liverpool, UK, spoke as special guests.
Prof M Omar Rahman, vice-chancellor of IUB and a renowned psychiatrist, delivered the welcome speech. Rashed Chowdhury, chairman, board of trustees, IUB also spoke on the occasion.
Prof Patel mentioned that, stigma is the main problem regarding our efforts to improve the condition of mental health. There is a myth that it is not a health condition at all, and just the misery of life. “We have to change our attitude to improve the situation’,” he mentioned.
Shamim mentioned that, 6.5% to 31% among adults in Bangladesh have psychiatric and psychogenic disorder.
The talk was followed by a lively question-answer session. Trustees, members of faculty and management and a good number of students attended the event.