Psychiatric disorders are considered one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. They also have a close relationship with other disorders like diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular diseases. According to WHO suicide rates are highest among India in South-East Asia, that’s why India is labelled as “Suicide Capital of South‑East Asia”. Mental health issues play an important role in causation and solution of a problem. The mental health scenario in India is worrying as there is a lack of awareness among the general population as well as the lack of mandatory training among medical undergraduates. As a result, thousands of doctors pass every year who are unable to manage a common psychiatric condition like depression and suicide.
The same concern was reflected from the first report of the subcommittee on undergraduate teaching in psychiatry, Indian Psychiatry Society (1965). This report has shown that psychiatric training is inadequate among medical undergraduate. Still, there is a lack of adequate training hours and trained staff in medical college. There is numerous evidence that such training among undergraduate will benefit a lot. Despite this, MCI didn’t adopt psychiatry as a mandatory subject in the passing of MBBS examination. This, in turn, impairs the mental health component of the basic health services in India.
According to WHO mental health atlas, there is only just 0.3 psychiatrists for 100,000 populations showing a large deficit. Most of the private and public non-teaching hospitals in India didn’t have psychiatric services on regular basis.
There are many ways to address this challenge. It needs effort from every aspect to attract undergraduate towards psychiatry subject and to build skill and knowledge in different ways. For this, there is a need to playing a major role in each faculty and the department as a team, development of the policies by the Institution and University to which they belong, as well as by professional bodies like the Indian Psychiatric Society.
In India, every year more than fifty-four thousand students are selected for MBBS. Hence medical college is a key target to do so. The aim of these activities is to increase mental health awareness among medical undergraduates. By participating in such activities graduates will hear, read and learn about nature, course, and management of psychiatric illnesses. Such exposal activities also play role in adopting psychiatry as future career branch as shown by the study done by Farooq et. al., 2014. By doing such activities, we can also address stigma related to these illnesses.
We have successfully organized the same event last year at SMS Medical College, Jaipur. Students of seven medical colleges of Rajasthan participated last year. The theme of last year quiz was General Psychiatry. This year theme is Psychopathology.
Important dates & information:
- The online screening on 1′st October, between 00:00 AM to 23:59 PM (mid-night to mid-night). Online screening link will be available on our home page (www.mindroot.org) on 1’st October.
- Screening will contain 20 questions (MCQ) and you have to complete it in a predefined time duration. Thereafter it will be submitted automatically.
- A team of 2 or 3 students will be selected from every college, based on screening results.
- Final quiz on 8th October at Jaipur.
- Timing: From 3 PM to 6 PM.
- Inauguration by: Shri Devendra Jhajharia, Awarded by Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratana Award)
- Prize distribution & closing ceremony by Shri Kalicharn Ji Saraf, Hon’ble Health Minister, Govt of Rajasthan
- Venue:
The Fern – An Ecotel HotelPlot No. 3, Airport Plaza, Tonk Road, Durgpura, Jaipur, Rajasthan 302018
Direction link:
bit.ly/thefernjaipur - Note: The students who will come from the outside of Jaipur and want to stay on 8th October, their stay will be arranged at the same venue.
- Syllabus: PSYCHOPATHOLOGY