WHO says China needs mental health care

Medical services initially focused on treating injuries and preventing disease outbreaks after the May 12 earthquake, which centered around Sichuan province.

But almost six weeks later, efforts have turned to psychological support, which nearly everyone who has experienced the earthquake will need, Hans Troedsson, WHO's China representative, told reporters. This will place an increased demand on the health systems in local areas, which were already fractured in the disaster, he said.

"It clearly needs a lot of attention," said Troedsson, who earlier this month visited the quake zone, where scores of destroyed hospitals and clinics left acute shortages of staff and facilities.

The disabled and those who have undergone amputations will need to be rehabilitated, and between 5 percent to 10 percent of those affected by the quake will need more specific professional psychological support, he said.

China's Ministry of Health has asked the WHO to help with training, he said.

Health Minister Chen Zhu said Wednesday that China aims to build medical centers in affected counties and towns by September to provide regular health service, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.

No government estimate of people needing psychological help has been released, although state media has reported that they could number as high as 600,000.

Already, teams of psychologists, psychiatrists and volunteer counselors from other provinces have gone to the hardest-hit areas. A regulation introduced earlier this month also requires governments at all levels to provide people with psychological assistance, according to the official People's Daily newspaper.

In the past, there has been a social stigma attached to mental illness in China. Increasingly fast-paced and stressful lifestyles stemming from two decades of economic success have forced a greater awareness of the problem.