Chinese colleges to track students' mental health

BEIJING, Sep 5 (Reuters) China has ordered universities to keep individual psychological health records for each incoming new student amid rising concern over campus suicides, state media reported today.

''This is part of a crisis prevention system designed to detect signs of psychological problems and prevent them from escalating into crises,'' Vice-Minister of Education Zhu Shanlu was quoted by the Xinhua news agency as saying.

Nearly 685 people commit suicide every day in China and at least 2 million try to kill themselves every year, the report said, citing a World Health Organisation expert.

School resumed after the summer vacation across China on Monday.

As part of the programme, all first-year students will receive a psychological checkup upon entering college, and all students will undergo one hour a week of instruction on psychological issues for one semester, Xinhua said.

While about 700,000 students are studying at Beijing-based colleges and universities, there were only 108 counsellors in 2006, it added. ''We need to train and recruit more professionals to fill the gap,'' Zhu said.

Disproportionate rates of suicide and depression among young people have appeared along with increasing stress due to fierce academic competition and a tight job market in China's rapidly changing society.

REUTERS LPB PM1638