Helping hand for mentally challenged

By Ranjan K Baruah

We have published about career opportunities related to the field of mental health. In this edition, we will publish some of the options in particular. Young people in our region may choose to take up careers related to mental health as there is a need for more human resources in this field.
We should be aware that there is a national mental health policy in India. This policy was announced in October 2014 and is based, inter-alia, on the values and principles of equity, justice, integrated and evidence based care, quality, participatory and holistic approach to mental health.
The policy’s goals and objectives include to reduce distress, disability, exclusion, morbidity and premature mortality associated with mental health problems of a person, to enhance understanding of mental health in the country, provide universal access to mental healthcare, increase access to mental health services for vulnerable groups, reduce risk and incidence of suicide and attempted suicide, ensure respect for rights and protection from harm of persons with mental health problems, and reduce stigma associated with mental health problems, enhance availability and distribution of skilled human resources for mental health.
Some of the career options related to mental health includes:
Psychiatrist: A psychiatrist is a physician who specialises in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study and treatment of mental disorders.
Psychiatrists are medical doctors, unlike psychologists and must evaluate patients to determine whether their symptoms are the result of a physical illness, a combination of physical and mental ailments, or strictly psychiatric.
Doctors who have successfully completed the entire MBBS programme are eligible for specialisation in psychiatry.

Psychologist: Psychology is the science of behaviour and mind, embracing all aspects of conscious and unconscious experience as well as thought. It is an academic discipline and a social science which seeks to understand individuals and groups by establishing general principles and researching specific cases. In this field, a professional practitioner or researcher is called a psychologist and can be classified as a social, behavioural, or cognitive scientist. Psychologists attempt to understand the role of mental functions in individual and social behaviour, while also exploring the physiological and biological processes that underlie cognitive functions and behaviours. There is more demand for psychologists and this is a subject that can be chosen by our students for their vibrant future.
A Clinical Psychologist can be hired at hospitals or as a counsellor. School psychologists take care of behavioural problems of children in schools. Industrial psychologists can use their knowledge at an organisation to motivate employees and a social psychologist examines individuals and trends of a society.

Occupational Therapists: An occupational therapist works with a client to help them achieve a fulfilled and satisfied state in life through the use of “purposeful activity or interventions designed to achieve functional outcomes which promote health, prevent injury or disability and which develop, improve, sustain or restore the highest possible level of independence. Occupational therapists help people of all ages to improve their ability to perform in their daily living and working environments. They work with individuals who have conditions that are mentally, physically, developmentally, socially or emotionally disabling. They also help them to develop, recover, or maintain daily living and work skills.

Psychiatric Social Work: There are many specialisations in the field of social work and psychiatric social work is related to mental health. Psychiatric social workers provide mental health services to individuals with high needs. They may perform psychotherapy and even diagnose mental illness. Social workers who are employed at psychiatric hospitals also do psychosocial assessments and provide therapy.

(Ranjan K Baruah is a career mentor and can be reached at [email protected] or 9864055558 for any career related queries)