Stalin inaugurates various facilities at Institute of Mental Health

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin launched Mananala Nallaatharavu Mandram (MaNaM), a scheme to provide psychological support for the medical college students and other facilities at the Institute of Mental Health in Kilpauk on Thursday.

Considering the risk in the suicides in the State, the mental health support forum is also being set up in all the medical college hospitals and the initiative also aims to train the students to attend to such patients in the right way. The programme aims at preventing suicides in the State.

Earlier, Health Minister Ma Subramanian had stated that the mental health forums will constitute of a committee of all department heads, assistant professors and students, including the principal of the medical college, the head of the psychiatry department and measures will be taken to improve the mental health of the students.

Innovative trainings for students' well-being will be provided, including skill development programmes.

The scheme "MaNaM" will help the students to contact a mental health expert with the helpline 14416 if they require counselling. The scheme is planned to be expanded to other colleges and schools in the near future.

He also flagged off 75 upgraded ambulances by the GVK EMRI 108 ambulance service, equipped with modern life saving equipments at the Institute.

The same has been facilitated at a cost of Rs. 22.84 crores. The ambulance service in the State currently has 1,353 emergency vehicles.

An intermediate care center for the inmates at a cost of Rs. 2.36 crore was also inaugurated by the Chief Minister. It is a 14 room facility. The already functioning "Half Way Home" is a home for many inmates who are not accepted by the family and was upgraded recently to be launched officially.

Health Minister said that Tamil Nadu Institute of Mental Health & Neuro Sciences (TNIMHANS), by upgrading the Institute of Mental Health at a total cost of Rs 40 crore is being done. He unveiled the three-dimensional view of the building. A separate mental health unit for children and to mental health support for expectant mothers will also function at the hospital. Autism treatment, elderly welfare, rehabilitation, special treatment for transgender people will also be implemented at the center.

An online center for telemedicine will be created to seek mental health counselling from experts directly from any part of the State. The center will provide facilities for undergraduate and postgraduate medical students, mental health psychology students and nursing students to receive mental health training. He also released the teacher's manual for the mental development of school students.