Directorate: Mental Health and Substance Abuse 

Contact details.

Director:  Prof Melvyn Freeman
Phone: 011 - 312-0489
Fax: 011 - 323-1913
e-mail: Freemm@health.gov.za
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Vision
Mental well-being for all people in South Africa through appropriate mental health and substance abuse programmes within the primary health care approach.
Mission
  • To develop policy guidelines and support programmes to promote mental well-being by:
  • Developing and implementing mental health and substance abuse legislation.
  • Improving planning and monitoring of mental health and substance abuse services through research, information systems and the development of norms and standards.
  • Assisting provinces to provide comprehensive mental health and substance abuse services with an emphasis on community-based care.
  • Assisting with development of human resources and building of capacity.
  • Ensuring the human rights of people with mental disability and shifting community attitudes towards the mentally ill.
  • Limiting the cause and effect of mental illness and disabilities focusing on the at risk population.
  • Preventing/reducing the demand and harm of psychoactive substances.
  • Limiting the cause and effect of violence.

Sub-Directorates

Hospital and Community Mental Health

This sub-directorate develops policy guidelines, protocols and norms in respect of severely mentally ill and intellectually handicapped people. The emphasis is towards the integration of mental health into general health care and provision of community care and psycho-social rehabilitation where possible.

This section also deals with Forensic services and legislative prescriptions.

Substance Abuse prevention

In this section the health aspects of prevention of alcohol and other drug abuse is dealt with. This includes developing of guidelines and protocols, liaison with other government departments and non-profit organisations and other interventions to reduce harm associated with substance abuse.

Some of the areas currently being examined are alcohol advertising/counter advertising; life-skills programmes; home brew concoctions and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.

Child, youth, women and family mental health

The promotion of mental health and the prevention of mental illness are important objectives of this sub-directorate. Specific areas include suicide, HIV/AIDS and violence.

Policies and protocols to improve mental health of children, youth, women and families are developed.

All sections assist provinces in the implementation of policy.


Legislation

A new Mental health Care Act has been drafted and is to be presented to parliament in 2001.

Acts

Relevant documents

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