Nearly 60 million Indians suffer
from mental disorders
New Delhi: At least 60
million Indians -- a number more than the population
of South Africa -- suffer from mental disorders, even as the country lags the
world in medical professionals and spending on mental-health issues.
Nearly 10-20 million
Indians (1-2 per cent of the population) suffered from severe mental disorders
such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, and nearly 50 million (5 per cent
of population) suffered from common mental disorders like depression and
anxiety at the end of 2005, Health and Family Welfare Minister JP Nadda
informed the Lok Sabha (lower house of Parliament) in May 2016, quoting data
from the National Commission on Macroeconomics and Health, 2005, the last
report available.
India spends 0.06 per
cent of its health budget on mental healthcare. The government has commissioned
a national mental health survey through the National Institute of Mental Health
and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, to estimate the number of mental
patients and utilisation patterns of mental health services.
Started on June 1,
2015, the study interviewed 27,000 respondents by April 5, 2016, according to a
reply in the Lok Sabha from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. India is
short of health professionals to address mental issues, particularly at the
district and sub-district level.
There are 3,800
psychiatrists, 898 clinical psychologists, 850 psychiatric social workers and
1,500 psychiatric nurses nationwide, according to a reply by the Ministry of
Health and Family Welfare in the Lok Sabha in December 2015. This means there
were three psychiatrists per million people, according to data from WHO, 18
times fewer than the commonwealth norm of 5.6 psychiatrists per 100,000 people.
By this estimate, India
is short of 66,200 psychiatrists. Similarly, based on the global average of
21.7 psychiatric nurses per 100,000 people, India needs 269,750 nurses.
The Mental Health Care
Bill, 2013, which provides for protection and promotion of rights of persons
with mental illness during the delivery of health care in institutions and in
the community, was passed unanimously by a voice vote in the Rajya Sabha (upper
house of Parliament) on August 8, 2016.
The new Bill has
increased the funding to centres of excellence in mental health, from Rs 30
crore to Rs 33.70 crore per centre.
Source: www.zeenews.india.com
10.09.2016
Never
apologize for being correct or for being years ahead of your time
Gandhiji
No comments:
Post a Comment