Kerala - Kochi   

Dearth of psychiatrists in health services

Kochi: The Government health sector is struggling to treat the mentally ill in the State, which has the highest rates of suicide and alcoholism in the country.

Despite the National Mental Health Programme, started more than five years ago, including two districts in the State among the 200 across the country, the Government health service continues to struggle to get an adequate number of psychiatrists.

While the country’s policy is to provide mental health service through outreach programmes in each district, implementation of it seems to have become impossible in the State, with only 50 psychiatrists in the health services.

In Ernakulam, there are two psychiatrists, but only one is working in the specialty. Thomas John, psychiatrist at the General Hospital, is the only specialist here. But during his outpatient consultation time, he also has to act as the Government authority for cases ranging from providing certificates of mental retardation to answering legal queries on the mental health of victims in cases. As the District Mental Health Officer, Dr. John is the chief licensing authority on all matters related to mental health.

In between, he visits peripheral and taluk hospitals. “There is little awareness about psychiatric treatment and no one seems interested in promoting it,” Dr. John said.

Another psychiatrist, working as a medical officer in a primary health centre, is not posted to provide mental health service.

According to sources in the health services, this psychiatrist’s posting as a specialist was not considered because of a dearth of general physicians in the backdrop of the increasing number of fever cases and threat of chikungunya.

A. Abdul Bary of the Mental Heath Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, says there are 25 outreach centres in the district. These were set up as part of the national programme, for which Rs. 1 crore was made available. Training, awareness and outreach clinics at primary or community health centres are the main components of the programme.

While the services are being carried out in the capital city without much problem, in other districts, psychiatric treatment is provided only if available.

There are three mental hospitals in the State, at Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur and Kozhikode. Besides, psychiatrists are available in medical colleges, where there are departments for the specialty.

The World Health Organisation recently gave a call for improving mental health services in poor countries, quoting a Lancet study, which concludes that that mental illness is responsible for about 14 per cent of all diseases globally and that a vast majority of afflicted people go without any form of treatment, especially in the developing world.

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