BACKGROUND: In 1983, an article and accompanying editorial was published on the state of psychiatry in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), which was described as "a mental health system in statu nascendi." METHODS: We provide a 30-year update on advances in mental health care in KSA. Data are reported from a wide range of sources, including the 2007 Saudi Arabian Mental and Social Health Atlas, which compares services in KSA with the rest of the world. RESULTS: We examine how the current mental health system operates in KSA, including recent changes in mental healthcare policy and development of a national mental healthcare plan. Discussed are current needs based on the prevalence and recognition of mental disorders; availability of services and providers (psychiatrists, psychiatric nurses, psychologists, and social workers); education and training in psychiatry; developments in consultation-liaison, addictions, child-adolescent, and geriatric psychiatry; and progress in mental health research. CONCLUSIONS: Mental healthcare in Saudi Arabia has come a long way in a very short time, despite cultural, religious, social, and political challenges, although there still remain areas where improvement is needed. The development of psychiatry in KSA serves as a model for countries in the Middle East and around the world.
BACKGROUND: In 1983, an article and accompanying editorial was published on the state of psychiatry in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), which was described as "a mental health system in statu nascendi." METHODS: We provide a 30-year update on advances in mental health care in KSA. Data are reported from a wide range of sources, including the 2007 Saudi Arabian Mental and Social Health Atlas, which compares services in KSA with the rest of the world. RESULTS: We examine how the current mental health system operates in KSA, including recent changes in mental healthcare policy and development of a national mental healthcare plan. Discussed are current needs based on the prevalence and recognition of mental disorders; availability of services and providers (psychiatrists, psychiatric nurses, psychologists, and social workers); education and training in psychiatry; developments in consultation-liaison, addictions, child-adolescent, and geriatric psychiatry; and progress in mental health research. CONCLUSIONS: Mental healthcare in Saudi Arabia has come a long way in a very short time, despite cultural, religious, social, and political challenges, although there still remain areas where improvement is needed. The development of psychiatry in KSA serves as a model for countries in the Middle East and around the world.
Authors: Faten Al Zaben; Mohammad Gamal Sehlo; Doaa Ahmed Khalifa; Saad Al Shohaib; Faisul Shaheen; Linda Alzaben; Rami Ghazi Ahmad; Jafar Ayman Ashy; Reema Ghazi Felemban; Harold G Koenig Journal: Int Urol Nephrol Date: 2015-04-22 Impact factor: 2.370
Authors: Faten Al Zaben; Doaa Ahmed Khalifa; Mohammad Gamal Sehlo; Saad Al Shohaib; Faisul Shaheen; Hanadi Alhozali; Alferdose Osama Hariri; Riyadh Ghazi Ahmad; Moayad Reda Kabli; Harold G Koenig Journal: Int Urol Nephrol Date: 2014-08-28 Impact factor: 2.370
Authors: Fahad D Alosaimi; Mohammad F Abalhasan; Abdulhadi A Alhabbad; Ebtihaj O Fallata; Bandar A Haddad; Nada I AlQattan; Mohammed Z Alassiry Journal: Saudi Med J Date: 2018-04 Impact factor: 1.484