Mental health along with diabetes and cardio vascular disorders will make up the largest chunk of illnesses in the coming years in India. Mental health problems like anxiety, stress, loneliness and depression are posing a serious concern to many people, according to neuro psychiatrists and psychologists on the World Mental Health Day which was observed on October 10 in Karnataka.

Dr. SM Chennabasvanna, former director of National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS) and present head of CADBAMS, a mental health centre, told Pharmabiz.com that while there are latest drugs available to treat mental illnesses, mental illness per se is not viewed as a fever or any other disorder and access or professional guidance is taken with a sense of shame and fear.

The overall quality of life of people with mental illness is very poor and there is hardly any focussed rehabilitation facility available in the country. Although Bangalore has reputed centre like NIMHANS and dedicated departments at the corporate hospitals providing treatment, still patients and there families are not accessing such medical centres at the right time, he said.

Currently, depression is the most common mental health problem reported at present in hospitals like NIMHANS, Manipal, Mallya, Sagar Apollo and CADBAMS, stated a group of psychiatrists at NIMHANS.

Dr. Murali Raj, head, department of psychiatry said that mental results do not result in deaths but they result in loss of quality of man-hours, and quality of life which complicates life.

Giving rough estimate on the people affected with mental ill health, sources from NIMHANS said that out of the 40 per cent mentally ill cases in Karnataka only 10 per cent can access quality treatment. The remaining are too scared to consult doctors or even undergo treatment as they have to approach psychiatry departments or come to mental health centres like NIMHANS or CADBAMS.

In his message on the World Mental Health Day, Dr. Chennabasvanna stated that seeking help for mental health should become as common as seeking help for viral fever, and people with mental illness need not suffer in silence. “There is nothing to be ashamed about seeking help in such a instances as in today’s stressed life, mental illness is an accepted disorder going by the upswing in the growth of drugs in the neuro psychiatry market world wide and in India.”