GMCH-32 team says police need to be sensitised on mentally ill patients

REACHING OUT TO MENTALLY ILL PATIENTS : No help from cops, rues health team

20-Apr-2014

Chandigarh : Even as the crisis intervention team of the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Sector 32, has been able to reach out to a significant number of needy families in the past few months, it still lacks support from the UT police.

Set up by the Department of Psychiatry at the hospital, the team has been treating mentally ill patients from the last seven to eight months.

However, lack of cooperation from the area police has affected the team’s functioning and has limited its role.

Medical experts said the police’s perception of mentally ill patients was ‘quite narrow.’ They usually picture a shabbily-dressed person as suffering from a mental disorder.

Patients, who appear ‘normal’ during brief conversation, are not perceived as mentally-ill by the cops.

“We need to educate the police as well as the judiciary about various illnesses and characteristics of mentally-ill patients,” said Dr BS Chavan, Head, Department of Psychiatry, GMCH-32.

Going by a few instances recorded by the crisis intervention team, the police needs to be sensitised about its role as mentioned in the Mental Health Act-1987.

Sample this: The crisis intervention team received a call from a resident of Mani Majra last week. The man sought help claiming that his wife, suffering from a mental disorder, had locked herself along with their two children inside the house and was not willing to open the door. A team of experts reached the spot and called up the local police to help them break open the door. However, the police allegedly withdrew ‘as it did not relate to any criminal act.’

“In a majority of cases, when our team sought help from the police, they either refused or reluctantly visited a few spots. They, however, withdrew themselves terming it an ordinary case due to their inability to identify the patient’s illness,” added Dr Chavan.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2014/20140421/cth1.htm#7

Wife’s plea to be guardian of “mentally ill” husband dismissed

24-Apr-2014

New Delhi: A woman’s plea for being declared as the guardian of her “mentally ill” husband to manage his properties has been dismissed by a Delhi court which said the man was in a capacity to take care of himself and his affairs.

Additional District Judge Sunil Rana rejected the woman’s petition, saying it was not maintainable under the Mental Health Act and the man behaved normally during his examination before the court and also answered all the questions.

The court considered the facts and circumstances of the matter and the examination of the allegedly mentally ill person by it during which he could answer all the questions properly and behaved normal throughout his examination.

“In these circumstances, by no stretch of imagination, it can be said that allegedly mentally ill person is not in a capacity to manage himself and his affairs. Hence, this court is of the opinion that present petition is not maintainable under the Mental Health Act,” it said.

The woman approached the court saying that she had married the man in 2002 and was living with him in North East Delhi till May 1, 2011 but thereafter she was forced by her in-laws to leave the matrimonial house along with her minor son.

She alleged that after her father-in-law’s death, property belonging to the family came to her husband but he was suffering from “mental disorder and was incapable of making wise decision and he needed medical treatment”.

She also alleged that her mother-in-law and younger brother-in-law wanted to usurp the property and she should be appointed as the guardian of her husband to take care of him and to manage his share in the property. The man’s mother and brother, however, submitted before the judge that he was residing with them and was not suffering from any mental illness and pleaded the court to examine him. The woman’s husband was examined by the court twice and it was observed that he could answer all the questions without any hesitation and also behaved normally.

http://zeenews.india.com/news/delhi/wife-s-plea-to-be-guardian-of-mentally-ill-husband-dismissed_926911.html

Patients to get right to mode of cure

10-Aug-2013

TEENA THACKER

NEW DELHI : Doing away with pre-Independence direct electro-convulsive therapy (ECT), also known as electroshock, used to treat mentally ill patients, the right of mentally-ill patients to decide their mode of treatment and decriminalising suicide for them are some of the progressive provisions of the new Mental Health Care Bill proposed by the government, which is expected to be introduced in this session of Parliament.

Once passed by Parliament, the bill will repeal the existing Mental Health Act, 1987. The draft bill proposes mental healthcare services affordable, of good quality and available without discrimination.

The Cabinet had in June approved the draft bill that defines mental illness in accordance with international standards. The draft bill describes the right of a mentally ill person for protection from cruelty, legal aid, information, mental healthcare and right to equality and non-discrimination.

The proposed bill is an attempt to bring a legal framework to deal with mentally ill patients. An estimated 10-12 million of the population suffer from severe mental disorders and around 50 million suffer from common mental disorders like depression.

According to the proposed bill, any person that attempts suicide would be presumed to be mentally unwell unless proved otherwise. The bill, therefore, decriminalises suicide for mentally-ill patients. Under the Indian Penal Code, suicide is a criminal act that attracts sentence for at least one-three years.

As per the proposed bill, a person can give advance directive on the treatment that he/she would like to undergo in an event of mental health situation. The draft bill lays down that any treatment or rehabilitation of mental health patients needs consent of that person, taken after full information has been given on his/her condition, the options available and prognosis. However, in cases where the person is unable to do so, the onus will be with the state authority. It also says that long-term care in mental health institute is to be used only in exceptional cases.

Keeping in view that a person may be declared mentally ill by family members due to property or marital disputes, the proposed bill gives states that a person can give an advance directive to the state that he/she should not admitted to a facility without consent.

The proposed legislation bans ECT without anaesthesia and restricts psychosurgery. With an aim to address the needs of the families and homeless mentally-ill people, the new legislation provides setting up Central and state mental health authorities. The proposed bill says that all mental health establishments, personnel and those treating patients with traditional methods of medicines will have to be registered with the Central mental health authority or with the state authority.

http://www.asianage.com/india/patients-get-right-mode-cure-071

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