"Mentally ill people are not mentally incapacitated people. In fact these people make sound decisions and contributions to society and can be cured once the necessary steps are taken".

These were the words of Dr. Janice Cooper, one of the key facilitators who organized the 3rd Anti Stigma Workshop on Mental Health and the Media, held on the 30th of July at the St. Theresa convent in Monrovia.

Addressing media practitioners in a two day workshop themed "The Media and Mental Health" that began on the 30th of July, Dr. Cooper noted that mentally ill people in Liberia and parts of Africa today are being stigmatized by misconceptions people have about them.

She explained that though a series of training sessions have been taking place in parts of the country to enhance the role of clinicians and medical practitioners in dealing with people with mental illness, much more remains to be done in solving the problems of the mentally ill.

In her thirty minutes brief to media practitioners on the role and responsibility of the media, Dr. Cooper warns journalists against using derogative statements on people with mental illness saying that it only exacerbates the problem and creates more stigmatization.

She made mention of several mentally ill people in and out of Liberia that had been cured and believes that family members and the community should equally play their role.

The workshop was the third of its kind and brought together facilitators from the Carter Center, the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (MOHSW) in collaboration with the Press Union of Liberia (PUL).

Speaking on behalf of the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare was Deputy Minister of Health, Cllr. Vivian Cherue, who said that the government is doing more to reduce the incidences of mentally ill people roaming the streets of the country. Minister Cherue said that she believes that there is a thin line between sanity and insanity. Though the Minister complained about meager budgetary allotment, she said that the government alone cannot do everything.

Minister Cherue admitted that the only psychiatric home in the country, ES Grant Medical Hospital, is not sufficient to cater to all the mentally ill people in the country. She however called on members of society and other stakeholders to be supportive in helping people with mental illness.