Ghana prayer camps highlight mental health care gaps

An investigation into mental healthcare in Ghana has highlighted a significant gap between national mental health laws and the reality for families in remote communities. In the border town of Paga, 16-year-old Hafiz Abdallah has lived at the Nyinbonya prayer camp for eight years after being brought there at age eight following the death of his twin brother.

Hafiz has never received a clinical diagnosis. His mother reported that his behavior became difficult to manage, involving property destruction and aggression, leading her to exhaust her savings on herbal remedies before turning to faith. At the camp, patients are sometimes chained to prevent them from wandering, and observers noted instances of malnourished residents and staff using physical force, such as pinching or slapping, to quieten patients.

Experts suggest this reliance on prayer camps and traditional healers is often due to how illness is perceived. Emmanuel Asampong, a clinical psychologist and University of Ghana lecturer, noted that when people cannot easily explain behavioral changes, they often attribute them to spiritual dimensions rather than biological ones.