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Mahesh

05/10/22 21:16 PM IST

NIMHANS to train 10,000 mental health workers to help senior citizens

In News 
  • NIMHANS and HelpAge India are jointly implementing Sarthak to ensure mental well-being of elderly.
Sarthak 
  • Sarthak is a community-based initiative that provides nurses, healthcare workers and volunteers training on geriatric mental health.
  • The National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Sciences (NIMHANS) and an NGO named HelpAge India are collaborating to implement this initiative.
  • Under Sarthak initiative, 10,000 mental health workers will be trained to identify and counter mental health issues faced by older people.
  • The training will be provided for non-specialized health workers and community caregivers through customized online modules focusing on specific categories like Non-Specialist health work force, Informal Caregivers and Institutional Caregivers.
NIMHANS
  • The Bengaluru-based National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Sciences (NIMHANS) is India’s apex centre for mental health and neuroscience education.
  • It comes under the aegis of the Union Health Ministry and operates autonomously as the Institute of National Importance.
  • The institute’s origin can be traced to the establishment of Bangalore Lunatic Asylum in 1847.
  • The Indian Parliament had passed a law in 2012 to declare it as an Institute of National Importance.
Mental Health situation 
  • According to the NGO HelpAge, over 20 per cent of adults aging 60 and above suffer from a mental or neurological disorders like dementia and depression.
  • During the pandemic, it found that in a sample size of 5,000 people, 60 per cent reported that they felt lonely and isolated. 40 per cent of them have felt depressed.
  • This issue is expected to worsen in the coming years.
  • The Longitudinal Ageing Study of India (LASI) report forecasted 14 million senior citizens in India will face mental health issues by 2050.
  • This is a significant increase from the current figure of 5 million.
  • Currently, in India, 2 in 10 people facing mental health issues are not receiving any kind of assistance to address mental health problems. 
Source- Indian Express 

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