‘Seek treatment for mental health issues like other physical ailments’

Our Reporter
Dimapur, Feb. 26 (EMN): Abused women, troubled children, those traumatised by violence, those who have attempted suicide or are addicted to alcohol or narcotics, and especially those who suffer acute or chronic mental illnesses can be helped substantially by competent healthcare experts, said Chotalu Sapu from Women Helpline 181 Nagaland.

Sapu was speaking at the workshop on Mental Healthcare Act 2017, organised by Dimapur District Legal Services Authority, Prodigals’ Home and Women Helpline 181 Nagaland, at Tourist Lodge, Dimapur, on Friday.

She stated that mental health services have a crucial role to play in alleviating sufferings associated with psychiatric illnesses, emotional distress, psychological disorders and behavioural pathology.

Informing that 181 is the helpline number that provide 24/7 toll free telecom service to women affected by violence and also women seeking support and information, she said the helpline facilitates crisis and non crisis intervention through referral to the appropriate agencies and further provides information about government schemes and programmes available for women as well as give support services to women affected by violence. Counselling, guidance and information through response team are provided, she said, adding that Women Helpline 181 Nagaland has received 16 cases since its inception and seven cases were referred to SMHIK in co-ordination with OSCs and women police.

She shared that ‘we should encourage systematic efforts to upgrade the amount and quality of mental health training for workers at all levels, from medical to community health workers. We should promote efforts to improve state gender policies towards interdicting violence against women and toward empowering women economically, and to make women central in policy planning and implementation of mental health services’.

She further mentioned some challenges faced by them, whereby she stated that there are lack of awareness on mental health care and also no proper mental health care in the districts. She also stated that there is limited support from state government and also there are no shelter homes that exclusively cater to the needs of mentally ill patients.

Director of Prodigals’ Home, K Ela in her presentation about Community Mental Health Program (CMHP) shared that the programme was started in 2020 with an objective to increase mental health services in partnership with various stakeholders, also to increase awareness on mental health and reduce stigma-related to mental illness.

She said that their objective was to improve ability of persons with mental illness in family, at work and society at large, and also to facilitate livelihood linkages of recovered persons with mental illness.

Stating that people with mental health issues should not be left alone, she said the goal of CMHP is to create accessibility of mental health services at block level, and change the behaviour of the community to seek treatment for mental health problems as they do for other physical ailments.

She further informed that the programme has been implemented in 52 villages (according to 2011 census) under Chümoukedima block, and since October 2020, 31 persons with mental disorders, 34 persons with intellectual disability and 22 persons with Epilepsy have been identified and enrolled.

Judicial Magistrate, Boduve Peter Resu, presenting on Mental Healthcare Act 2017, said that the act came into action only in 2018, humanising people suffering from mental illness.

He shared that it is an act to provide mental healthcare and services to persons with mental illness and to protect, promote and fulfil the rights of such persons during delivery of mental healthcare and services and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

He further highlighted some rights of persons with mental illness like; to live in safe and hygienic environment, to have adequate sanitary conditions, to have privacy, to have reasonable facilities, proper clothing so as to protect such person from exposure to maintain dignity, to have adequate provision for preparing for living in the community, and to be protected from all forms of physical, verbal, emotional and sexual abuse.

Panel Lawyer, DDLSA, Khumchuba, also presented on the roles of Police, NGOs and Healthcare officials at the workshop.