This blog is written by Dr Leveana Gyimah, WHO Ghana Mental Health Technical Officer and Patrick Avevor, WHO Ghana Infectious Hazard Management Officer, on World Mental Health Day

Mental health is an essential part of human well-being. It shapes how people think, feel, and act, how they handle stress, relate to others, and make decisions. Yet for many years, mental health has been under-recognized in health and development conversations, often overshadowed by physical health needs. World Mental Health Day, commemorated globally on 10 October since 1992, provides an opportunity to correct this imbalance—raising awareness, challenging stigma, and calling for action to improve access to mental health services.

This year’s theme, “Access to Service: Mental Health in Catastrophes and Emergencies”, reminds us of a truth that is often overlooked: emergencies do not only destroy buildings, homes, and infrastructure—they also disrupt minds, emotions, and communities. In the aftermath of disasters, the visible losses are easy to count—collapsed structures, flooded homes, damaged roads—but the invisible wounds carried in people’s hearts and minds often go unnoticed. Fear, grief, trauma, and uncertainty linger long after the physical clean-up is done. Families struggle to find stability, children may be haunted by the shock of sudden change, and entire communities can lose the sense of safety and connectedness that once held them together.

Health emergencies, natural disasters, and armed conflicts, and attendant mass population movements can cause or worsen mental health and psychosocial conditions. Survivors may lose family members, jobs, and homes. Children may experience interrupted schooling and separation from parents. Communities may see their social bonds fractured, trust eroded, and livelihoods destroyed. These disruptions often manifest in grief, anxiety, depression, and trauma.

Evidence shows that nearly everyone exposed to an emergency will experience psychological distress, and for 1 in 5 people, this distress escalates into a diagnosable mental health condition such as depression, anxiety, or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Without support, these conditions can persist long after the emergency has ended, slowing recovery and weakening resilience.

In recent years, Ghana has faced a series of public health emergencies and disasters that highlight the urgent need to prioritize mental health in crisis response. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted daily routines, separated families, and created an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty. Frontline health workers carried the double burden of saving lives while battling exhaustion, grief, and stigma.

In 2023, the Akosombo Dam spillage displaced tens of thousands across the Volta, Eastern and Greater Accra Regions, wiping out homes, health facilities, and livelihoods overnight. Families were left with the trauma of sudden displacement and the painful uncertainty of starting over. Even the responders were not spared—many nurses and health workers providing care to displaced families struggled with their own mental health challenges while working under immense pressure and witnessing suffering firsthand- in some cases, they were displaced themselves.

Recurring floods in the north and along the coast have also swept away property and livelihoods, leaving families in despair as they grapple with loss and instability. On top of this, disease outbreaks such as COVID-19, yellow fever, cholera, mpox, and meningitis have fueled fear, stigma, and social tension, further straining the resilience of already vulnerable communities.

Each of these crises may differ in form, but they all share one reality: they disrupt not only the physical world but also the psychological well-being of those caught in their path. Parents worry about how to care for their children, students are cut off from schools, breadwinners lose their livelihoods, displaced people find themselves in unfamiliar shelters with limited privacy and security, and recovered patients and their families live with the stigma of infectious diseases. In such moments, mental health support becomes as critical as food, water, or shelter.

The World Health Organization (WHO), together with the Government of Ghana, the Ghana Health Service, and the Mental Health Authority, has worked to ensure that mental health is not sidelined during emergencies. Recognizing that crises affect not only the body but also the mind, WHO has consistently sought to make Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) a central part of emergency preparedness and response.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, WHO supported psychosocial hotlines and counseling services, trained frontline health workers to provide basic psychological first aid, and ran public education campaigns to combat stigma, fear, and misinformation—factors that often worsen distress in times of crisis.

Beyond emotional support, MHPSS also played a critical role in strengthening confidence in the health system during the pandemic. Trained psychologists and psychiatrists were integrated into the clinical management teams and tasked with delivering COVID-19 test results within a framework of counseling and psychological support. By being the first to communicate results and provide reassurance, they helped reduce fear, prevent mistrust, and facilitate cooperation with isolation and treatment protocols. This approach not only protected public health but also built hope and resilience among patients and their families.

In the aftermath of the Akosombo Dam spillage, WHO’s support went beyond policy and technical guidance. Together with national and district authorities, WHO staff were physically present in affected communities, working side by side with local teams to provide psychosocial support to displaced families. Volunteers and health workers were trained to offer counseling and mental health first aid, while community-based support systems were strengthened to help victims cope with displacement, loss, and trauma. 

Importantly, even health responders themselves—nurses, volunteers, and other frontline workers—were not left behind, as they too faced mental strain while working under extreme pressure.

MHPSS has also proven essential in managing the longer-term effects of certain public health emergencies. Many epidemic-prone diseases—such as COVID-19, meningitis, and mpox—can leave survivors with neurological or physical complications, including hearing loss, cognitive challenges, seizures, or facial disfigurement. These secondary effects can cause deep psychological distress and social stigma. Integrating mental health services into recovery and rehabilitation therefore ensures that affected individuals and their families receive sustained psychological support to rebuild confidence, manage stigma, and restore quality of life well beyond the acute phase of disease. These experiences have made one reality clear: emergencies expose the gaps that still exist in providing timely and accessible mental health care. While Ghana has made progress, much more needs to be done to ensure that every person affected by crises has access to the support they need. For WHO, this continues to be a guiding lesson. Mental health is now deliberately woven into emergency preparedness and response strategies, ensuring that when disaster strikes, communities are not only protected physically but also supported emotionally and psychologically on their path to recovery.

As Ghana joins the world in marking World Mental Health Day 2025, one message stands out clearly: mental health is inseparable from overall health, and it must remain a priority in every emergency response. Investing in mental health services, building the capacity of frontline workers, and ensuring timely psychosocial support are not optional extras—they are lifesaving interventions that help individuals and communities recover more quickly, rebuild more strongly, and move forward with resilience.

For behind every flood, outbreak, or disaster, beyond the visible destruction, lies an invisible burden carried in the minds and hearts of survivors and responders alike. That burden can only be lifted when mental health is treated not as an afterthought, but as a cornerstone of survival, healing, and human dignity.