Asylum Down is one of Accra’s best known neighbourhoods. Few residents think about the name. It comes from the asylum built there in the colonial era, which is still Ghana’s largest psychiatric hospital.
The Accra Psychiatric Hospital opened in the early twentieth century as a lunatic asylum for the Gold Coast colony. The area around it became known as Asylum Down, and the name stuck long after the word asylum fell out of use elsewhere.
A hospital under strain
The hospital has long faced overcrowding, shortages of staff and medicine, and funding problems. Doctors and nurses have spoken publicly about the difficulties of providing care. Some patients have stayed for years because families could not or would not take them home.
Ghana has two other major public psychiatric hospitals, Pantang Hospital in Accra and Ankaful Psychiatric Hospital near Cape Coast. The country has very few psychiatrists for its population.
The Mental Health Act
In 2012, Parliament passed the Mental Health Act, which set up the Mental Health Authority and aimed to move care from large institutions toward community services, protect the rights of patients and regulate traditional and faith-based healers. Implementation has been slow, largely because of funding.
Prayer camps
Many Ghanaian families seek help for mental illness at prayer camps and traditional shrines. Human rights groups have documented people being chained at some of these places. The Mental Health Authority and partners have worked to end the practice and bring the camps under regulation.
Stigma
Stigma remains one of the biggest barriers. People with mental illness are often mocked or hidden. Families sometimes delay treatment for years for fear of what neighbours will say.
Changes
Awareness is growing. Celebrities and influencers have spoken about depression and anxiety, and mental health campaigns have increased on radio and social media. Churches and mosques have joined some awareness efforts, and World Mental Health Day on 10 October now draws events and radio discussions across Ghana.
Where to get help
Anyone in Ghana who is struggling can seek help at the psychiatric hospitals, at regional and district hospitals with mental health units, and through the Mental Health Authority.
The neighbourhood kept the old word. The challenge for Ghana is to make sure the care on offer does not stay stuck in the same era.
