MIMH a centre of excellence for mental health
The Maharashtra Institute of Mental Health located at Sassoon Hospital has been designated as a centre of excellence for upgrading infrastructure and manpower.
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The Maharashtra Institute of Mental Health (MIMH) located at Sassoon Hospital has been designated as a centre of excellence for upgrading infrastructure and manpower. The MIMH is the only institute in the state that has been identified by the Centre and will receive funds to the tune of Rs 30 crore.
As part of the National Mental Health Programme,various state governments were asked to send proposals for being identified as centres of excellence in the field of mental health. While Dr Alka Pawar,Director of MIMH,welcomed the decision,she fervently appealed that the state should pursue the matter after the Centres grant of Rs 30 crore is over.
It was the delay on the part of the state governments medical education department to clear earlier proposals that has led to the delay in receiving the Centres grant,said Dr Mohan Agashe,founder director of MIMH and advisor to the government on mental health,said Agashe.
When contacted,health secretary Milind Mhaiskar said the project now entailed creation of 19 teaching posts. We are working on the scheme and giving it our best shot, he told The Indian Express.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates,151 million people suffer from depression and 26 million from schizophrenia; 125 million people are affected by alcohol use disorders. As many as 40 million people suffer from epilepsy and 24 million from Alzheimer and other dementias. Around 8,44,000 people die by committing suicide every year. In low-income countries,depression represents almost as large a problem as does malaria (3.2% versus 4.0% of the total disease burden),but the funds being invested to combat depression are only a very small fraction of those allotted to fight malaria.
It is an important decision to designate the MIMH as the centre of excellence but we need consistent support from the state to ensure that it is a success, said Pawar. Projects for constructing half way homes and rehabilitation centres have been in limbo for several years and now the central governments grant will be utilised to start construction at the land at Pashan and Yerawada.
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