Mental Health Care in the Middle East

This book aims to provide a comparative analysis of mental health service delivery in the Middle East to shed light on challenges and disparities in access to care. The Middle East is a region rich in diversity, covering various countries and cultures. Most observers have attested to the view that countries in the Middle East have a substantial treatment gap for people with mental illness. Only a tiny fraction of the population with mental illness can access evidence-based mental health care. There are multiple challenges associated with this region, including insufficient funding and research, a shortage of skilled professionals, substantial out-of-pocket expenses, low levels of mental health literacy, income inequality, and a high level of stigma. While governments are making efforts to address this gap through improved mental health policies and programmes, providing mental health care to all those in need remains a significant challenge. In addition, many Middle East countries are contending with conflicts, wars, terrorism, and all of which can potentially give rise to various behavioural and mental disorders.

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Dr. Salim Al-Huseini is a Specialist Psychiatrist at Al Masarra Hospital, where he serves in the Department of Psychiatry under the Ministry of Health in Oman. He holds a Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree from Sultan Qaboos University and is a board-certified psychiatrist. Dr Al-Huseini completed his psychiatry residency at the Oman Medical Specialty Board.

Dr. Al-Huseini completed his residency training in psychiatry at the Oman Medical Specialty Board (OMSB). He holds a specialty certificate in psychiatry from both OMSB and the Arab Board of Health Specializations. Dr. Al-Huseini is currently undertaking a clinical fellowship in rehabilitation psychiatry with the National Health Service (NHS) in the United Kingdom. He also holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Clinical Psychiatry from the University of Bolton, UK.

Dr. Al-Huseini has co-authored more than 50 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. He is acting as a reviewer for various journals. His primary research interests include mental health, suicide and suicide prevention, treatment-resistant depression and psychosis and psychosocial rehabilitation.

Dr. S. M. Yasir Arafat is currently working as an Associate Consultant of Psychiatry at Bangladesh Specialized Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh. He is affiliated with Dnet as an honorary Research Fellow and the Biomedical Research Foundation, Bangladesh, as Senior Research Fellow. He was affiliated with the University of Bristol, UK, as Visiting Senior Research Associate (August 2021–2023). He completed an MD in Psychiatry from Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka, and an MBBS from the Dhaka Medical College, Dhaka, Bangladesh. He also did an MPH in Health Economics and an MBA in Marketing. Dr. Arafat has (co)authored more than 350 peer-reviewed articles and 50 book chapters, and (co)edited more than 10 books with Springer. He has been included in the global 2% researcher list in 2021, 2022, and 2023. He is acting as an editorial member in more than 10 leading journals in mental health published by Elsevier, Wiley, Springer, and Taylor and Francis. His research focused on mental health, suicidal behavior, psychometrics, panic buying, and psycho-sexual disorders.