A RECENT report of four primary school children in Rompin who swallowed Panadol and hypertension pills in an apparent suicide attempt and ended up in hospital because they did badly in a Bahasa Malaysia test is a matter that must be taken seriously by the authorities.

In November last year, the media reported the tragic death of 12-year-old S. Subashini of SRJK(T) Ladang Simpah, Nibong Tebal, who hanged herself because of her disappointment in her Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah examination results.

These two incidents must be subject to a thorough review and investigation into what needs to be done to deal with mental stress in schools and our educational institutions.

While examinations are part of the education process, we should not expect such extreme consequences stemming from poor results.

The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) wishes to propose to the government to look into mental health promotion for students as a remedy to overcoming severe mental stress among many schoolchildren arising from our examination-oriented education system.

Among the mental health promotion activities that can be implemented in schools include promoting mental health literacy in the school community through talks, exhibitions and quizzes.

There is a need to establish partnership with key agencies to implement and support mental health promotion in schools and work closely with education professionals to carry out awareness campaigns.

The issue of mental health among schoolchildren must be addressed with a sense of urgency.

If they do not get help, our nation is going to be burdened with a generation suffering from serious mental health problems in an ever-increasing competitive global environment.

TAN SRI LEE LAM THYE, Chairman, NIOSH

Source: NST – May 23, 2008