The identification of mental illness has become more commonplace in many developed countries, and treatments are readily available. However, increased awareness of mental illness is raising health concerns in poorer countries that are unable to effectively respond to these problems. Countries plagued by AIDS and poverty do not have the extra resources to deal with the increasing prevalence of mental illness.

Treatment for mental health problems is both time and cost prohibitive, nor is it widely available in these poor locations; therefore, alternative solutions are being suggested. Among the simplest is training community members to be on the look out for symptoms of mental illness, so that those found to be suffering could then be referred to a program for treatment. One such program for schizophrenia has already been set up in India. Nirmala Srinivasan, head of a lobby group based in India, says that due to the lack of available treatment in rural areas, people have no access to help.  He states that a large majority of Indians who suffer from mental illness do not get proper treatment.

Most families in rural communities deal the best way they can with mentally ill family members. In some countries, sufferers are monitored by being chained or caged. In others, they are believed to be possessed, and help is prohibited. There is no easy solution to this problem, and aid often cannot be effectively administered by foreign doctors. The best case scenario is when those who seek treatment for mental illness are counseled by someone intimately familiar with both the language and culture of the sufferer.

Information retrieved from http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/09/04/health/

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