Epidemiology of Psychiatric Disorders and Overview of Access to Mental Health Care in South Asia

South Asia is a densely populated area consisting of eight countries with low- and middle-income backgrounds. The region shares some common cultural beliefs, distribution of psychiatric disorders, care-seeking patterns, and enduring treatment gaps. At the same time, there are some variations among the countries based on religion, local culture, languages, and sociocultural aspects. This chapter discusses an overview of the epidemiology of mental disorders in South Asian countries along with potential challenges, including treatment gaps, help-seeking patterns, and out-of-pocket expenses to provide mental health services in South Asia. It also highlights the influence of non-medical management of psychiatric disorders, like traditional healers and religious persons, in help-seeking for mental health in the region.