ANN ARBOR—More than 340 million people suffer from it worldwide, and more people are affected by this devastating illness than HIV or cancer. The World Health Organization estimates that by 2020 it will be the second major cause of “lost years of healthy life,” second only to heart disease, but it’s one of the most under diagnosed and under treated diseases ever. Depression.

Depression is a chronic disorder with high levels of social and occupational impairment. Symptoms range from moodiness and irritability to thoughts of suicide. Depression can devastate a patient, their family and friends.

Women, especially those during childbearing years, have the highest incidence of depression along with people who have a family history of depression, those with a physical illness and the elderly.

The University of Michigan is teaming up with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)/World Health Organization (WHO) to bring more attention to this disabling disease in the small country of Belize. This is an area of the world where little is known about depression and, in effect, often left untreated. Cheryl Killion, assistant professor in the U-M School of Nursing, says, “Depression is a problem everywhere, but it’s especially difficult to deal with in this growing country because there aren’t a whole lot of resources—there are only two psychiatrists in Belize.”

The U-M, working in conjunction with PAHO/WHO, is co-producing, “Depression in Belize, Central America.” This video is an outgrowth of a meeting between WHO Collaborating Centers, nurse leaders and mental health professionals, the University of Puerto Rico School of Nursing and the Puerto Rican Department of Health to improve mental health in the Caribbean and throughout the Central and South American region.

Killion says the video will be released this summer and focuses on real life stories of depression in Belize. Mental illness is a big problem in this tiny country because of persistent poverty, the legacy of colonialism, geographic devastation by recent and recurring hurricanes, terrorism in surrounding countries, and domestic and substance abuse. Belizean women suffer depression at higher rates than men because husbands and sons often have to leave their homes and cities to find work, isolating their wives, and there are few civil rights for women.

Another major contributor to the high depression rates is a lack of resources. With only two psychiatrists in this country that’s about the size of Massachusetts, depression is often under diagnosed and left untreated and grossly misunderstood in the community. The identification and treatment of depression and other mental illnesses are often left up to nurses who are many times the primary care givers. To help in the treatment of depression, a group of about nine nurses has received specialized training in psychiatric nursing; these health professionals work throughout the six districts in Belize.

This video, along with printed materials, will be distributed to health care professionals, policy-makers and aired on local TV stations. Killion says the goal is to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness, foster an understanding of this debilitating disease, and solicit support for mental health services and training.

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