With the turn of the century the demands on the psychiatrist have increased tremendously. The department is ready to function and shoulder all responsibility. Apart from providing high quality treatment, faculty members endevour to create public awareness about psychiatric illnesses. Faculty members participate in national and international conferences, seminars, symposia and organise mental health awareness programmes for the public.

Faculty members participate in the academic programme for the postgraduates, interns and field training in psychiatry for the psychologists.

It is one of the objectives of the hospital to make psychiatry more relevant to the social and cultural needs of our country and incorporate Indian philosphical thought and yoga in the practice of Psychiatry at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital.

Health burden of mental disorders

With the dramatic increase in the life expectancy in recent years, the health dynamics has undergone major change. The communicable diseases are being rapidly replaced by non-communicable diseases as major causes of death and disability all over the world.

For too long, health professionals have been preoccupied with mortality statistics which tells us only how people die. It is equally important to know how people live and how the total burden of diseases, both death and disability is shared by the society.

Mental illness may not, in itself, be fatal but it causes extensive disability in rich and poor countries alike, and is increasing. Mental disorders (9.7%) rank almost as high as cardiovascular diseases (10.5%) in the total global burden of diseases. Mental disorders are projected to increase to 15% of the global burden of diseases in a decade.

The world health organisation has ranked depression fourth in a list of the most urgent health problems worldwide. Indeed, the chance of developing a depressing illness is estimated to be 1 in 5 for women and 1 in 10 for men, making it a particularly common affliction of mankind and a major public health problem. The global burden of disease study has therefore been an eye opener (and mind opener as well) for public health administration.

Stigma

Indeed psychiatric illness is like any other physical illness. Stigma remains the major cause behind the neglect of psychiatrically ill patients. Self-stigmatisation makes patient shameful and reactive and can prevent proper treatment. A major contributing factor is that mental illness for those who have not had it, is very hard for them to understand and can be seen as a sign of weakness. Openness by mentally ill and their education could be helpful. Fortunately, with increasing awareness stigma is on the decline.

Facilities

1. Department of Psychiatry has been recognised and licensed by Govt. of NCR Delhi.

2. Academics:

3. Department had been recognised for PhD in Psychiatry from Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi

4. Dr. J.M. Wadhawan has been recognised as the Research Supervisor

5. Department is running a 3 years course in DNB Psychiatry

The out patient department functions at full capacity every day. All types of psychiatric disorders are managed and support treatment for psychosomatic disorders is provided in outdoor as well as indoor patients.

The department offers de-addiction programme, psychotherapy and stress management counselling.

The department provides day care services for nacroanalysis and modified ECTS, which are carried out in a very sophisticated manner in our hospital.

This department not only caters for adjoining states of Delhi but also gets patients for treatment from neighbouring countries like Afganistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, etc.

Every year the department of Psychiatry and Psychology organises mental health awareness programmes for education of psychiatry patients and their family members to create public awareness, destigmatisation of psychiatric illness and promotion of positive mental health.

Promotion of mental health

During various mental health awareness programmes and during counselling, emphasis is laid on destigmatistation, acceptance of treatment, prevention and making them aware of approaches for stress alleviation and positive mental health. To achieve mental satisfaction, the following personality and attitude characteristics need to be achieved.

• Have reality-based expectations and lessen the gap between expectations and reality. Accept reality and adapt yourself.

• Negative thinking to be changed to positive thinking.

• Know yourself well and know your assets and liabilities; so accept yourself as you are.

• Know your responsibilities and try your best to bear them.

• Develop high frustration and tolerance levels.

• Expectations about others to be reduced. Persuade them to understand and live comfortably with you. Maintain good cordial relationship with others and appreciate others.

• Avoid loneliness and get support from others. Religious and spiritual activities will also help.

• Acceptance of negative emotional events like death, failures, etc without getting much emotionally disturbed

• Minimise your needs and lead a contented life. Have satisfaction with what you have achieved.

• When you meet with failures, disappointment - don't lose heart. Failures can be a step towards success. Have faith in yourself and try again

• Love and affection are tonics to mind; give and get them.

• When faced with problems, don't try to escape. Try to understand and solve them using all available resources. Don't feel shy to get help and support from others if needed.

• Do every thing in an ordered and a planned way. Remember disorganisation breeds anxiety. Cultivate healthy habits and streamline your routine activities.

• Today should get importance not the past, not the future, try to be happy today

• Be active, enjoy the work you do.

• Express your feeling with someone you like and write a diary if possible.

• Have hobbies to direct you attention to relax-music, reading and creative activities

• Actively and regularly achieve deep mental relaxation- yoga, meditation, sports, physical exercise.

• Say no to alcohol, drugs and smoking. Remember there is no safe intoxicant. Drug abuse is universal - very much in India also.

Consult psychiatrist for any psychiatric illness like depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsions, unusual stresses, psychosomatic problems, sleep problems (always associated with most psychiatric illnesses), drug addiction, alcoholism, sexual disorders marital problems etc. and counselling for positive mental health, without any hesitation and treat your self properly.

Suicide prevention counselling services

The long-term trend in suicide mortality has been increasing and every year more than one million people commit suicide accounting for 1 to 2 % of total global mortality. According to world health organisation (WHO) statistics, the annual worldwide incidence of completed suicide was 16 per 100000 persons in 1995. This means that globally 1 per 6,000 persons commits suicide every year. Statistics for suicides in India for the ten-year period (1975-1984) revealed that the suicidal deaths ranged from 5.8 to 7.1 per 100,000.

Risk factors for suicide

1. Psychiatric disorder

2. Personality traits and disorders

3. History of violence

4. Alcohol and drug misuse

5. Single, divorced or separated

6. Current circumstances and problems faced by the patient such as social (eg. famine or any social upheaval), domestic (eg. living alone, etc) and occupation (eg. whether unemployed)

7. Previous suicide attempt

8. Communicating intent of suicide to others

9. Preparations made for the act (eg. purchasing means, saving up tablets, making a will, etc) by going out of the way