New St James LMAJ president puts mental health at heart of agenda
Published:Friday | October 3, 2025 | 12:09 AMAlbert Ferguson/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
Instead of just focussing on justice, educator Floyd V. Hitchman, the new president of the St James chapter of the Lay Magistrates Association of Jamaica (LMAJ), has outlined a bold agenda, which will include focussing on mental health, a subject often only whispered about.
Speaking against the theme ‘Mental Health: Balancing Lives through Justice for All’, in his inaugural address, Hitchman says he wants the association to join in the effort to draw attention to mental health, which he thinks requires comprehensive attention.
“‘Mental Health: Balancing Lives through Justice for All’ is more than a theme,” said Hitchman. “It is a call to widen the reach of justice to include care, compassion, and advocacy for Jamaicans struggling with unseen burdens. It is time to lead not only with the law but with compassion, advocacy, and awareness,” added Hitchman, in urging justices of the peace to become agents of care, stability, and hope in their communities.’
The urgency behind Hitchman’s agenda is grounded in the troubling data surrounding mental health. Jamaica recorded 67 cases of suicides in 2024, the highest in nearly 25 years. Men accounted for more than 90 per cent of those deaths, underscoring the disparity in the gender pattern. Mental disorders such as depression and anxiety are said to affect thousands, yet access to treatment is limited by cost, stigma, and geography.
Experts estimate that 15 per cent of children may have a diagnosable mental disorder, but fewer than 10 per cent of those with severe cases receive care. Only about 40 psychiatrists serve Jamaica’s nearly three million people, far below the global benchmarks.
These gaps, which are compounded by social pressures from economic hardship to family strain, leaving many Jamaicans vulnerable, make Hitchman’s message both a warning and an opportunity to act. Interestingly, his focus aligns closely with the message coming from Dr Christopher Tufton, minister of health and wellness.
Following reports of rising suicides and a spike in calls to the ministry’s Suicide Prevention Helpline (888-NEW-LIFE) – 633 calls last month alone – Tufton made a call, urging Jamaicans to look after each other as it relates to what is an often ignored matter.
“My call is for every single Jamaican to stop, to think, to look around their environment to see what is happening with their loved ones and with their friends, to offer support where they can, and where they can’t, to seek support from the public-health system, through faith-based groups, through other safe spaces, and from safe persons,” Tufton said in a press release on Thursday. “It is going to take each of us to address the mental-health challenge.”
Tufton further noted that the ministry has been expanding its services by training 47 non-psychiatric healthcare workers under the WHO’s Mental Health Gap Action Programme, which is seeking to identify and respond to signs of depression and other disorders. He said another cohort of such health workers is slated to commence training in the coming months.
Schools are also being engaged through the School Mental Health Literacy Programme, which equips guidance counsellors to reduce stigma while teaching coping strategies to students.
According to the press release from Tufton, at the community level, 45 Problem Management Plus providers are already active, offering support for persons experiencing distress linked to relationships, workplaces, or everyday struggles.
150 MENTAL-HEALTH CLINICS FOR ADULTS
Families and individuals who are experiencing signs of mental illness can access care in more than 150 adult mental-health clinics across the island.
“We continue to operate our public mental health clinics, of which there are more than 150 that cater to adults and more than 20 to children and adolescents islandwide,” said Tufton.
It is against that background that Hitchman is committing to push for wellness workshops for justices of the peace and lay magistrates to engage in mentorship programmes for young people as well as engage in outreach to seniors, while partnering with mental-health professionals.
“Those who serve (JPs) must also be supported,” said Hitchman, noting that the well-being of magistrates directly impacts the quality of service they provide.
Like Tufton, Hitchman agrees that stigma remains one of the greatest barriers to tackling mental health, arguing that too many Jamaicans delay seeking help until crises escalate whether due to fear of being labelled or lack of awareness about available services.
According to Hitchman, justice itself must evolve from a narrow lens of enforcement to a broader mission of healing.
“Together, we can strengthen the mental health of our people, restore dignity where it has been lost, and build bridges across generations,” said Hitchman.
The new Hitchman administration includes Vice-Presidents Reverend Paul King and Dujaughn Brown; Andrea Kerr Finiken, secretary; Whitcliff Roberts, treasurer; Haresh Ramchandani, public relations officer; and Suzette Ramdanie-Linton, immediate past president.