THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The psycho-social support team constituted by the government under the Mental Health Programme has been effective in easing the stress of the public during this unprecedented lockdown period. The health department has constituted the programme with the aid of Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) of Women and Child Development and Social Justice DepartmentSo far, 12,37,148 people have been given psychosocial support and tele-counselling in the state. In Thiruvananthapuram, 27,864 such calls have been addressed and in Ernakulam, 44,670.
Now, a special intervention programme for children has been designed to address their issues. “There have been many cases of death by suicide, especially children. So, we have come up with a three-level intervention programme for children which will be done with the help of ASHA workers, anganwadi teachers and school counsellors who will understand and address the issues faced by children. The DISHA toll-free number will also be provided for the purpose,” said Dr Kiran P S, state nodal officer, Mental Health Programme. Besides children, pregnant women will also be given psychosocial support.
Kiran said: “We started the programme to address the psychological and social needs of people in the state. Although we started with psychosocial support calls to persons in quarantine or isolation, later we extended it to the vulnerable population which includes mentally ill patients, children with special needs, guest labourers and elderly people living alone.”
The psycho social support team consists of 1,143 personnel from the state, including psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric social workers, counsellors and therapists of ICDS, Social Justice Department, Integrated Counselling and Testing Centre, the National Health Mission and social workers and clinical psychologists. “Through the helpline numbers, the team has been providing 24X7 service and giving psychosocial support to people during the lockdown period. Follow-up calls are also being made and if further intervention is needed, they are directed to psychologists or psychiatrists,” said Kiran.
Till date, psychosocial support calls have been made to over 5,45,364 persons in quarantine or isolation. They include people who are in institutional quarantine as well. Besides the counselling sessions, pharmacotherapy has also been started. So far, 326 people from the state have been given pharmacotherapy.Support has also been extended to around 1,000 health workers who are engaged in combating the spread of the pandemic and are facing mental stress. Dr Kiran said: “The need for mental health support has become essential during the lockdown period. Through the help of counsellors and psychologists, we plan to extend our support to more people.”
Counselling cell at University of Kerala
To cope with unfamiliar situations triggered by the coronavirus, the University of Kerala had started a counselling cell to provide support to students, parents and teachers. “Although we started counselling in December last year, it was in May that we started giving more importance to Covid-related cases. People were facing anxiety issues triggered by the pandemic. So far, about 100 counselling sessions have been held. Besides tele counselling, we have started giving direct counselling taking the necessary precautions, “ said Dr Vimal Kumar, senior consultant psychologist.The seven-member team has been providing support through phone, WhatsApp and email. The service is available from 9am to 6pm.
Number of people given Psycho social support for various issues
Types of discomfort TVM EKM
1. Stress 196 2020
2. Anxiety 144 306
3. Depression 25 15
4 Sleep impairment 67 460
5. Stigma issues 57 569
6. Other Psychiatric issues 50 14
7. Social needs 211 196