Should compulsory treatment be ordered for mental patients?
As stress levels are rocketing because of the economic turmoil, the number of schizophrenics in Hong Kong is also rising drastically - by 23.1 per cent. Among 7 million Hongkongers, there were 154,625 mental patients in 2008-09, which is more than 2 per cent of the population.
The news of a mental patient's involvement in the death of a three-year-old boy has shocked the public.
Many critics challenged the government for not offering compulsory treatment. However, with limited resources, I have deep concerns for the effectiveness of such a policy.
I am shocked that Hong Kong, touted as Asia's world city, offers deficient mental medical treatment which only lasts a few minutes, let alone the rehabilitation services provided by the Social Welfare Department.
Nurses only visit extreme cases and it is usually only to remind them to attend the next appointment. Patients diagnosed as low-risk can easily 'escape' further treatment and continue to pose great danger to the public.