*25 May, 2011* *Snehlata Shrivastav & Payal Gwalani*
*NAGPUR* : The Gadhave family did try to get Subhash treated. He has had four rounds of treatment in the Government Mental Hospital in Nagpur: three of one year each and one that lasted three years. The treatment offered at the facility apparently did not have much effect on him. But thanks to the doctors at the Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (MGIMS), Sewagram, Subhash can start life afresh, hopefully for the better. He was first noticed by an MGIMS team during a medical camp in the village. They immediately asked their psychiatry department to work on this peculiar case. They discovered a family history of mental illness. They also got to know that Subhash had suicidal tendencies. Twice during the early 1990s, he had tried to kill himself. "When we brought him over to our hospital in Sewagram, we couldn't stand near him due to his foul body smell. He had not brushed his teeth or taken a bath for almost fifteen years. He had sustained injury marks from the chains. Not having spoken for perhaps a few years, his speech was slurred as well," said Dr Prakash Behere, head of the psychiatry department at MGIMS. It was difficult for the doctors to establish a rapport with him or to communicate. It took some time for Subhash to warm up to the doctors. After many efforts, they made him presentable, giving him a bath, a haircut and a shave. Later, they diagnosed the condition to be schizophrenia. After staying at MGIMS hospital for sixteen days, receiving medication that included injections and oral tablets, Subhash went home a changed man. Doctors at the hospital are very happy with the way he has responded to their treatment and have promised to follow his case up on a monthly basis. But the indifference of society and organizations working against superstitions and irrational attitude of people still continues to bother them. "It is surprising that all through the fifteen years of captivity, no NGO or Human Rights Organisation came forward to help Subhash. The law also prohibits a mentally ill person to be chained or tied up," said Dr Behere. He also spoke of an instance in 2001 wherein 25 mentally ill people were killed in a fire at Erwadi in a private asylum in Tamil Nadu as they could not run away. http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-05-25/nagpur/29581146_1_mentally-ill-people-government-mental-hospital-subhash -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Mental Health Advocacy (News 'N Views) India" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/MhaNewsViewsIndia?hl=en ------------- Affiliated Groups : MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCACY INDIA [email protected] Discussions on mental health law / policy / plan monitoring / human rights etc [email protected] India-specific news and views related to mental health [email protected] Information and support to carers of people with mental health issues [email protected] Mutual support and sharing of experiential knowledge, skills and social learning amongst peers
