Psychiatric Problems of Developing Countries

Abstract

When a Western-trained doctor first encounters the practice of medicine in the Third World, he cannot fail to be impressed by the apparently limitless sea of morbidity—infection, faulty sanitation, malnutrition, congenital and acquired malformations—with which a very small number of trained personnel have to cope, as best they can. In public health planning of these countries priority has to be given to arresting the killing diseases, such as malaria, tuberculosis and other deadly infections, and to the provision of basic hygiene, of pure water, and of adequate nutrition. The next priority goes to deploying preventive measures against debilitating disease, wherever such measures are known, and their application has been shown to be feasible; and finally when the expectation of life has been satisfactorily increased, attention is given to interventions which improve the quality of life.