*Ritu Goyal Harish* *January 22, 2011* * * *PUNE -* Digest this. The Schizophrenia Awareness Association (SAA) estimates that Pune has about 2 lakh people suffering from at least some form of mental illness. There are approximately 50,000 people who are unable to work but lead a close to normal life because of their mental illness.
Those getting psychiatric treatment in the city could be between 10,000 and 15,000 (national average is 10%). In the light of such startling revelations made by SAA office-bearers, the extensive work being undertaken by the organisation in Pune is commendable. Founded in 1998 by Dr Jagannath Wani, the SAA joined hands with Ekalavya, a self-help group (SHG) founded for patients, and has steadily strived to reach out to patients (shubharthis) suffering from mental problems and their families (shubhankars). The organisation aims at promoting awareness about the disease and reaching out to the youth in schools and colleges, the most vulnerable age-group to be affected by mental illness. Speaking to DNA, Amrit Kumar Bakhshy, president of SAA, a shubhankar himself, revealed that the issue of human rights and protection of the individual rights of the patients is a pertinent concern in mental health today. “The SAA has been a part of deliberations to bring about changes in mental health law to protect the human rights of persons with mental illness in accordance with UNCRPD (United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disability),” he said. Ekalavya offers solace to shubharthis and shubhankars. The members of Ekalavya meet regularly and interact with each other. This helps them in finding solutions to their problems. The group also has its rules about timings and regarding how people are to interact. Shubharthis’ meetings in Pune are held every Saturday from 4.30 pm to 6 pm at Dhayari. http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report_in-pune-2-lakh-suffer-from-mental-illness_1497690 -- 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
