Shanghai health authorities target depression

Local health authority will kick off a campaign targeting early intervention of depression, officials said on Monday.

According to the World Health Organization, there are 322 million people suffering from depression worldwide and about 800,000 people kill themselves every year.

There are about 46.8 million people with depression in China and the incidence is rising. However, only 30 percent are diagnosed, and many don’t seek medical treatment due to social stigma and fears of discrimination, officials said.

Local authorities announced a Healthy Shanghai action last August and plan to promote psychological services targeting mental disorders like depression to improve public awareness on early identification, intervention and recovery. Shanghai plans to improve the treatment rate of depression by 10 percent in 2022 and 30 percent in 2030.

To achieve its goals, the authorities will launch a series of depression-care events, promote a self-testing tool and offer training to community general-physicians in depression screening, among other measures, said the Shanghai Health Commission.