In a country where mental health conditions cost over $1 trillion to the Indian economy (second only to cardiovascular diseases at $2.17 trillion), how unfortunate it is that they are largely ignored or hushed up. Mental healthcare centres may be spreading in the country, but the majority is saturated in urban areas.
66 per cent of the Indian population lives in the villages, and with over 13 per cent of all the people in India battling some form of mental illness, the country is doing a disservice to its citizens by letting a large portion of them suffer in silence.
Dr Manoj Kumar, a psychiatrist based in Kerala is on a mission to change this across the State.
About ten years ago, he left his psychiatric practice in the UK and flew back to India to take care of the mental health of the rural population here.
Speaking to The Better India about his years in India, Kumar says, "Kerala has a history of getting involved in social issues. I was a psychiatrist in the UK for about 30 years when I decided to come back to my roots and get involved with the community here.
To aid his vision, Kumar founded the Mental Health Action Trust (MHAT) in 2008 in Kozhikode—an organisation that works on a decentralised model to provide mental health care to the rural populace. The first step, he believes, is to take the awareness about mental health beyond medical professionals and expand it into the communities. And so, the more than 1000 volunteers at MHAT become the first point of contact between the people and the organisation.
full article in the link below
https://www.thebetterindia.com/173434/kerala-free-mental-health-care-doctor-inspiring-india/
Posted by: Ravi Narasimhan <ravi.narasimhan.in@gmail.com>
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