Ministry of Gender, Family and Social Services has decided to staff two psychiatrists for the special needs home in Guraidhoo, Kaafu Atoll.
The ministry has stated that the psychiatrists will be staffed at the special needs home within two months. The decision was made after the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM), in a report, expressed concern that no doctors or nurses specialised in treating mental health are staffed at the facility.
At a press conference, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Gender, Family and Social Services Zaufishan Abdulla Kamaludeen said a doctor was last staffed at the special needs home in 2020, but that he returned to his country at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. She said work is being done to increase the staff at the facility due to the increase in capacity, and that the ministry plans to hire new nurses and caretakers as well.
Furthermore, Permanent Secretary Zaufishan assured two psychiatrists are enough for the 150 patients at the special needs home, and that they will also be able to attend to the children under state care. She noted that the facility lacked a psychiatrist for the past two years, leaving Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) to provide assistance to care for the patients.