NHM MizoramNATIONAL MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAMME, MIZORAM
State Nodal Officer: Dr. Robert L. Khawlhring, MD (Psy.)
Introduction
‘Mental Health’ is one of the most important aspects of general health. This is emphasized even by the World Health Organization, who defined health as the state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
PROBLEM STATEMENT/ BACKGROUND
India comprises around 18% of the global population and significantly contributes to the global burden of mental disorders. In 2019, mental disorders were the second leading cause of years lived with disability (YLDs), and self-harm and violence were the tenth leading cause of death. Evidence suggests that suicide deaths increased by 40% from 1990 to 2016 making it the third leading cause of death in several Indian states.
Recent national level studies have highlighted that 15% of the adult population in India have mental health issues requiring intervention and a wide treatment gap of 70-92% exists for a range of mental disorders.
One in four families is likely to have at least one member with a behavioral or mental disorder (WHO 2001). The Government of India has launched the National Mental Health Programme (NMHP) in 1982, with the following objectives:
1. To ensure the availability and accessibility of minimum mental healthcare for all in the foreseeable future, particularly to the most vulnerable and underprivileged sections of the population;
2. To encourage the application of mental health knowledge in general healthcare and in social development; and
3. To promote community participation in the mental health service development and to stimulate efforts towards self-help in the community.
DMHP: The District Mental Health Program (DMHP) was launched under NMHP in the year 1996 (in IX Five Year Plan). The DMHP was based on ‘Bellary Model’ with the following components:
1. Early detection & treatment.
2. Training: imparting short term training to general physicians for diagnosis and treatment of common mental illnesses with limited number of drugs under guidance of specialist. The Health workers are being trained in identifying mentally ill persons.
3. IEC: Public awareness generation.
4. Monitoring: the purpose is for simple Record Keeping.
5. To provide mental health services including prevention, promotion and long term continuing care at different levels of district healthcare delivery system.
6. To augment institutional capacity in terms of infrastructure, equipment and human resource for mental healthcare.
7. To promote community awareness and participation in the delivery of mental health services.
8. To broad-base mental health into other related programs.
DISTRICT MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAMME: (All 9 districts has been covered by NMHP Mizoram) which are as follows:
1. Aizawl DMHP: Started in the year 1999, was functional till 2011. Programme re-started in 2016 in the last week of January.
2. Lunglei DMHP: Started in the year 2006, was functional till 2011. Programme re-started in 2016 in the last week of January.
3. Champhai DMHP: Started in the year 2014 and is functioning till date.
4. Saiha DMHP: Started in the year 2014 and is functioning till date.
5. Kolasib DMHP: Started in the year 2016 and is functioning till date
6. Serchhip DMHP: Started in the year 2016 and is functioning till date
7. Lawngtlai DMHP: Started in the year 2016 and is functioning till date
8. Mamit DMHP: Started in the year 2018 and is functioning till date
9. Aizawl West DMHP: Started in the year 2018 and is functioning till date
NMHP Activities:
1) Catering to patients at OPD, IPDand to emergency/casualty department at district hospitals and taking care of referred cases from within the hospital and from other places.
2) Trainings: Trainings are regularly conducted for Medical Officers, Staff Nurses, Health Workers and other staff under H&FWD. Manpower training and development for prevention, early identification and management of mental disorders. The training would be provided by Medical Officers posted at District Hospitals to Community Health Workers at grass root level.
3) IEC including awareness campaigns: Dissemination of information through print media such as pamphlets, posters, bookmarks etc regarding mental health awareness. Observation of important Mental Health days- World Mental Health Day, World Suicide Prevention Day, World Alzheimer’s Day (in collaboration with ARDSI, Mizoram Chapter).The DMHPs in various districts have organized several awareness/sensitization programmes for addressing Mental Illness stigma in schools, colleges and other institutions in the community. Media such as television, radio and others are utilized for better awareness of mental health and reduction of stigma. Educational institutions and religious groups are visited from time to time for advocacy regarding acceptance of mental health.
4) Ambulatory Service: Poor patients (BPL) who are referred to the district capitals or from the district capitals to the state capitals are given assistance/ free transportation under the heading of ambulatory service.
5) Outreach Activities: DMHP on its own (in all districts other than Aizawl) and in collaboration with NGO’s (T.I) organizes programmes among the community and institutions either in the form of free clinics or advocacy awareness or both.
DMHP organizes Home Visits at regular intervals especially for patients who need follow-up.
6) Targeted Intervention: Targeted Intervention involvement of NGO’s under National Mental Health Programme is to play a role in the TI activities to bridge the gap between the general population and Health department (their main activity being to operate a 24x7 helpline, organize outreach for IEC and Free Clinics) An NGO namely ARDSI-Mizoram Chapter have been involved as Targeted for the purpose of filling the gap between grassroots population, schools, colleges and the community are addressed directly through advocacy and training programmes. The TI NGO also has counselors who ran a 24 hour helpline for crisis and suicide management and Home Visits to mentally ill patients.
7) Operating a 24x7 helpline because of increase in mental health cases during COVID-19 pandemic.
8) Equipments: Equipments such as psychological testing kits had been procured for usage at the district level.
9) Drugs: Drugs are procured and issued to every district for distribution to the needing patients.
10) Monitoring and evaluation of all district is carried out from time to time.
11) Tele MANAS: Taking into account the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the psychological and emotional health of citizens, the Union government has launched a ‘National Tele Mental Health programme’ which aims to provide universal access to equitable, accessible, affordable and quality mental health care through 24X7 tele-mental health counselling services as a digital component of the National Mental Health Programme (NMHP) across all Indian States and UTs with assured linkages. The main objectives is to exponentially scale up the reach of mental health services to anybody who reaches out, across India, any time, by setting up a 24x7 tele-mental health facility in each of the States and UTs of the country, to implement a fully-fledged mental health service network that, in addition to counselling, provides integrated medical and psychosocial interventions including video consultations with mental health specialists, e-prescriptions, follow-up services and linkages to in-person services and to extend services to vulnerable groups of the population and difficult to reach populations.
The roll out of National Tele Mental Health Programme for the state of Mizoram is as follows:
1. Nodal Officer : Dr. Eric Zomawia, Mission Director, NHM
2. State Programme Officer : Dr Robert L. Khawlhring, SNO NMHP,
3. Establishment of Tele MANAS Cell :State Mental Health Cell,
Directorate of Hospital & Medical Education (DHME), MINECO, Khatla, Aizawl.
4. Mentoring Institution : LGBRIMH, Tezpur.
5. Email : telemanasmizoram22@gmail.com
State Programme Management under NMHP:
|
Sl. No. |
Name |
Designation |
Contact No. |
|
1. |
Dr. Robert L. Khawlhring |
State Nodal Officer |
|
|
2. |
Saidingliani Sailo |
Psychiatric Nurse |
|
|
3. |
Lalmuanpuii Hauhnar |
Psychiatric Social Worker |
|
|
4. |
Lalchhanhima Sailo |
Clinical Psychologist |
|
|
5. |
Catherine Lianvulmawii |
M&EO |