The Presidential Staff Office along with the Indonesia Psychologist Association continues to consolidate to expand the performance and coverage of SEJIWA service, so that it can better meet the people's demand for psychological service.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Chief of Presidential Staff Moeldoko called for expansion of psychological consultation aid for mental health (SEJIWA) to not only provide psychological consultation for people affected by COVID-19 but also for various other issues.

"The people's mental health demand not only exists during the pandemic and disaster. The people's demand continues to exist," he remarked through a statement, Thursday.

People are confronting various complex situations, such as the threat of economic recession, food crisis, economic crisis, geopolitical tensions, and various natural disasters, he noted.

These conditions may affect the people's mental state that would necessitate the government's attention, he remarked during the SEJIWA re-launch plan coordination meeting along with the Indonesia Psychologist Association (Himpsi) here, Wednesday.

"The Presidential Staff Office along with the Indonesia Psychologist Association continues to consolidate to expand the performance and coverage of SEJIWA service, so that it can better meet the people's demand for psychological service," he remarked.

"Mental health service is also everyone's rights and not just for the economically privileged. Thus, SEJIWA should still exist to meet the people's demand by improving their service performance and coverage," he noted.

Moeldoko also expects that SEJIWA volunteers, coordinated by Himpso, can also be deployed on the field to provide psychological service to natural disaster victims, such as child victims of the earthquake in Cianjur, West Java.

The KSP will further coordinate with the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) concerning this matter, he noted.

SEJIWA is a telecounseling service initiated by Himpsi since 2020. This program was then accommodated by the Presidential Staff Office, Health Ministry, Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry, COVID-19 Task Force, and BNPB.

To this day, the telecounseling service has received hundreds of thousands of counseling requests from people wherein the number of calls that reached SEJIWA stood at 212,768 in 2021.

The health ministry stated that one out of five Indonesian citizens experience a mental health disorder. Thus, the government ensures that mental health maintenance continues to be a priority.

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Translator: Rangga P A J, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Suharto
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