Government should adopt new models to monitor and provide quality treatment to patients
Students take part in a rally to raise awareness on World Mental Health Day in Chennai on Saturday. (Photo: DC)
Chennai: At a rally to mark World Mental Health Day, several psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and NGOs spoke about how the government has not yet taken effective steps towards providing proper treatment and rehabilitation of the mentally ill.
Social stigma continues to be a big reason why many patients don’t seek help, they said. “If a relative has fever we rush them to the doctor but if the same person is facing mental illness, we hesitate to do so. People must understand that mental illness is like any other illness and it needs immediate treatment,” said K. Shanmugavelayutham, convenor at Tamil Nadu Peoples Mental Health Forum.
He spoke of instances where hospitals refuse to admit patients with mental illness, “In one instance, a lady was admitted for a self inflicted injury, the minute they found out from her
tests that she was schizophrenic they immediately asked the family to leave despite there being a government rule that hospitals have to treat them.”
This year’s theme of World Health Day is “Dignity in Mental Health”. Government should adopt new models to monitor and provide quality treatment to the patients, Dr Anbu Durai, psychiatrist, said.
“It is not enough to stuff them with medicines. We need to stress on activities and exercises specifically designed for them. It is important to rehabilitate them properly.” Present at the rally was 65-year-old Shanthi, who had been diagnosed with schizophrenia 11 years ago after an accident.
With medication and counselling, she was able to deal with the disease, secure herself a job and is now an active member of society. This is a rare case. Thousands continue to wait on the streets for help, social workers said.
( Source : deccan chronicle )
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