Schizophrenia was the most common and costliest condition, with 7.5 million cases consuming Rp3.5 trillion ($213.4 million), agency head Ali Ghufron Mukti told reporters in Surakarta, Central Java.
In 2024, some 2.97 million mental health cases were referred from primary healthcare facilities to hospitals, he said.
Central Java recorded the most cases, at about 3.5 million, followed by West Java, East Java, Jakarta and North Sumatra.
Mukti said every universal health coverage participant had the right to access mental healthcare, and the state was obliged to guarantee it.
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His agency, he added, was working with stakeholders to ensure access through primary care facilities, with treatment and rehabilitation available when needed.
He urged Indonesians to carry out early detection using the WHO-certified Self Reporting Questionnaire-20, saying the results could help flag medical issues for further examination. Patients declared stable after hospital treatment could rejoin the referral system and continue therapy closer to home, he added.
Clinical psychologist Tara de Thouars said the initiative matched rising demand for care. One in 10 Indonesians suffer from mental health problems, while 72.4 percent of workers report such issues, Health Ministry data shows.
She said suicide attempts outnumber recorded suicides by 10 to one, with the 2024 National Mental Health Survey finding 39.4 percent of teenagers had mental health problems, a figure rising by up to 30 percent each year.
Causes include economic pressures, stress, social media and family burdens, she said, adding stigma discouraged people from seeking help.
At the Dr. Arif Zainudin Regional Mental Hospital in Surakarta, acting director Wahyu Nur Ambarwati said 90 percent of inpatients were covered by universal health insurance.
The hospital has 213 beds, including 177 for psychiatric treatment, and offers psychosocial rehabilitation to help patients return to productive lives, she said.
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Reporter: Mecca Yumna Ning Prisie
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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