SINGAPORE, Feb 8 — By 2030, all 25 polyclinics in Singapore as well as 900 more general practitioner (GP) clinics will be equipped to provide mental health services, Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong announced.

This will bring mental health services "closer to the community", he said in Parliament on Wednesday (Feb 7) at the end of a two-day debate on a motion filed by five People's Action Party MPs to advance mental health in Singapore.

At present, 19 out of the 25 polyclinics here provide mental health services. Dr Janil Puthucheary, Senior Minister of State for Health, said that these services are provided by "multi-disciplinary" teams comprising family physicians, psychologists, medical social workers and nurses.

As for GP clinics, more than 450 GPs have been trained under the Mental Health-GP Partnership Programme by the Institute of Mental Health (IMH), to h...