*November 3, 2010* *CHENNAI: *Though as many as 7 crore persons in India need immediate mental healthcare, the country is facing a severe shortage of mental health care professionals.
There are just around 4,000 psychiatrists throughout India. In Tamil Nadu, the situation is no different.Dr M Thirunavukarasu, president-elect, Indian Psychiatric Association, said that every year about 500 psychiatrists pass out of medical colleges, but of these nearly 400 opt for jobs overseas. One of the evidences for the stagnant number of psychiatrists in the country is that the fact that number of psychiatrists who are registered with the association has not increased over the years, said Dr Thirunavakarasu. He pointed out that psychiatrists have not been posted at the three top women institutes in the city, the RSRM Hospital, Kasturba Gandhi Hospital and the Institute of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, in spite of a long pending request by the association.Health Secretary V K Subburaj told Express that in TN there is a shortage of nearly 3,000 psychiatrists. There are only 300 psychiatrists in the State, which include both from government and private hospitals. There are only two psychiatry posts each in the government medical colleges; the Madras Medical College and Madurai Medical College.Girija Vaidyanathan, Special Commissioner, State Health Society, said, “With the shortage of psychiatrists hitting the mental health scenario set-up, the situation is worse in rural set up where trained psychiatrists are low.” http://expressbuzz.com/states/tamilnadu/TN-suffers-from-shortage-of-psychiatrists/219472.html -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Mental Health Advocacy (News 'N Views) India" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/MhaNewsViewsIndia?hl=en ------------- Affiliated Groups : MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCACY INDIA [email protected] Discussions on mental health law / policy / plan monitoring / human rights etc [email protected] India-specific news and views related to mental health [email protected] Information and support to carers of people with mental health issues [email protected] Mutual support and sharing of experiential knowledge, skills and social learning amongst peers
