Mental Health Center unable to provide adequate treatment due to surge in patients: Geela
The Minister of Health has announced that a 10,000-square-foot plot of land has been allocated in Hulhumale for the construction of a specialized mental health hospital, responding to the rising number of patients seeking psychiatric care. The government decided to establish the facility in Hulhumale due to the high demand for services in the Greater Male' Area and the availability of essential infrastructure and resources in that location.
Health Minister Geela Ali speaking on state media. | PSM
Minister of Health Geela Ali has stated that the Center for Mental Health at IGMH is unable to provide adequate treatment due to the high volume of patients seeking psychiatric care.
Responding to a question from a member of the opposition MDP in Parliament, the Minister stated that while the Mental Health Department at IGMH provides inpatient services with a very limited number of beds, it is currently unable to meet the high demand for treatment.
The Minister stated that the Center for Mental Health is currently not equipped to handle its existing workload or the high volume of patients seeking treatment. The Minister noted that between 2023 and 2025, a total of 70,000 people sought psychiatric care across the Maldives. Of these, 45,000 patients received medical treatment within the Greater Male' region.
The Minister stated that the statistics clearly demonstrate the urgent need for a specialized hospital of this nature within the region. According to the Minister, the decision to establish the facility in the Greater Male' Area is driven by the concentration of existing resources in the capital, as well as the fact that the various diagnostic tests and specialized treatments required by such patients are currently centralized in this region.
Consequently, the Minister stated that the government has decided to construct the hospital in the Male' area rather than in the atolls. In this regard, the Minister noted that the government has finalized plans to build a mental health hospital in Hulhumale' and has allocated approximately 10,000 square feet of land for the project.
This is the hospital that the current administration had previously decided to construct in L. Gan.
The Minister stated that the upcoming mental health hospital will be equipped with state-of-the-art facilities. She further emphasized that the institution is designed to provide comprehensive and high-quality medical care to all patients seeking treatment there.
