“Dr. Dosunmure Explores Factors Contributing to Rise in Psychiatric Patients”

A Psychologist, Dr Andrew Dosunmu, has attributed the rise in the number of psychiatric patients in Nigeria to the high rate of consumption of alcohol and other controlled substances.

Dosunmu, therefore, advised parents, especially mothers, to ensure proper monitoring of their children to avoid substance abuse and its psychiatric effects.

The Founder of a Non-Governmental Organisation, Psychcare Foundation, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Ile-Ife.

He identified peer pressure and uncontrolled exposure to uncensored movies, advertisements and music videos as factors that have negatively influenced social culture among youths.

He advised parents to closely monitor their children’s behaviour, friends and what they watch on TV, their phones and other devices.

According to him, many children are taking alcohol and other hard drugs without the knowledge of their parents.

He explained that smoking cigarettes, marijuana and consumption of alcohol has resulted in cancer of the lungs and some finding themselves as psychiatric patients.

Some parents introduce their children into these acts unknowingly by sending them on errands to buy cigarettes and alcohol.

“Government should reawake censorship board to screen what artistes produce because the majority of these children learn a lot of evils from social media whereby they’ll take to alcohol consumption and substance abuse.

“Other developing countries don’t allow all these atrocities on their social media.

“Therefore, let us all rise to our responsibilities, and know that we’ll all give account of our deeds on judgment day,” he said.

Dosunmu said that Psychcare Foundation had rehabilitated over 1,000 psychiatric patients within eight years of its establishment.