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Bridging the treatment gap in India: Online training of psychologists in basic mental health services

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 August 2021

A. Kapanee ,
P. Sudhir  and
L. Suman
A. Kapanee*
Affiliation:
Clinical Psychology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, India
P. Sudhir
Affiliation:
Clinical Psychology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, India
L. Suman
Affiliation:
Clinical Psychology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, India
*
*Corresponding author.

Abstract

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Introduction

The National Mental Health Survey of India 2015-16 (Gururaj et al., 2016) indicated a large treatment gap of 70-92% for mental disorders and a paucity of mental health specialists in the country. In order to address this treatment gap and develop human resources, the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, India, with impetus from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India, launched the online course of Diploma in Community Mental Health for Psychologists.

Objectives

The course was designed with the objective of training individuals with a Master’s Degree in Psychology, in providing first-level psychological care in the community.

Methods

The course is a 3-month online programme comprising of approximately 25 hours of self-paced e-learning and 11 hours of live real-time interactive discussion via video conference. The course comprises of 6 modules, with an assessment at the completion of each module. Pre- and Post-Assessment is conducted to evaluate competencies achieved.

Results

On successful completion of the course, trainees are expected to have achieved competencies to: Screen for and identify mental health problems in adults and children, and understand factors influencing them; Understand management options; Conduct interview-based functional developmental assessment for intellectual deficits; Conduct first-level brief psychosocial interventions; Make appropriate referrals to Mental Health Professionals and other health professionals.

Conclusions

This digitally-driven online course is a viable option for development of human resources on a large scale, in a resource-scarce (i.e. of mental health specialists) country such as India.

Disclosure

No significant relationships.

Keywords

community mental healthPsychologistsonline trainingmental health treatment gap
Type
Abstract
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 64 , Special Issue S1: Abstracts of the 29th European Congress of Psychiatry , April 2021 , pp. S832 - S833
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the European Psychiatric Association
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