Mental Health: Understanding, Legislation, and Pandemic Challenges

INTRODUCTION

Mental health plays a crucial role along with physical health in the development of an individual. The WHO constitution shows that Mental Health is of the most extreme significance to have a quality life. Notwithstanding, there are people with mental inabilities who in specific conditions can’t settle on choices all alone. The psychological sickness keeps going long and essentially affects the existence of the person, which at times continues disintegrating with an expansion on schedule and age.

Furthermore, the data suggest that more than 300 million individuals experience the ill effects of depression which is identical to 4.4 per cent of the absolute population of the world. As per a report led by the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, 1 of every 40 and 1 out of 20 individuals are experiencing past and current scenes of depression in India.

Thus, considering these data, the article attempts to elucidate mental health in simple terms. It also puts forth how the ancient philosophies consider it. Further, taking into account the contemporary scenario, it talks about the Mental Healthcare Act, 1987 and the irregularities that popped out of it with time.

The article talks about the provisions of the newly implemented Mental Healthcare Act, 2017, and attempts to analyze them critically. It not only talks about the issues that remained unaddressed in the act but viewpoints of the courts are also discussed. There is no single study even after four years of implementation available anywhere about this Act. Thus, taking a holistic approach, the writers attempt to discuss how the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017 helped mentally ill persons.

 Mental Healthcare Act, 2017

“Just because no one else can heal or do your inner work for you, doesn’t mean you can, should, or need to do it alone.”

— Lisa Olivera

The times we are going through – the ongoing pandemic scenario made it important to again ponder over the issues and challenges posed by stress and anxiety on the mental health of an individual. The Constitution of the World Health Organization (hereinafter WHO) defines ‘Health’ as ‘a state of complete physical, mental, spiritual and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.’[i] WHO sees that mental wellbeing and prosperity are basic for assisting individuals with becoming creative and dynamic citizens in addition experience a meaningful and quality life.[ii]

The definition provided by WHO depicts that Mental Health is of outrageous importance to have a quality life, nonetheless, there are individuals with mental insufficiencies who under specific conditions, do not have the capacity to settle on choices all alone. The psychological sickness continues to go and altogether affects the life (presence) of the person, which sometimes goes on with crumbling the expansion of time and age.

Further, a study led by the National Care of Medical Health (NCMH) revealed in WHO advances that at least 6.5 per cent of the Indian population encounters different genuine mental disorders, with no recognisable rural-urban contrasts. There are diverse successful medicines, therapies and other treatments accessible to help the patients, however, the number of mental health workers like psychologists, psychiatrists, and doctors required is extremely less in number. As per a 2014 report, it was pretty much as low as ‘one in 100,000 people.’[iii] Moreover, in recent times, as a consequence of COVID-19, the psychological well-being of individuals is getting exacerbated, day by day. As per a recent 2020 study, 43 per cent of Indians are suffering from ‘clinical depression.’[iv]

The Mental Healthcare Act, 1987 provisions are coming up short in adapting to such situations. In addition, India in like manner needs to address the worldwide responsibilities towards mentally ill people that it had due to the Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities, signed in 2007. Accordingly, the government enacted a new Mental Healthcare Act, 2017 (hereinafter MHA or the Act) to determine the unaddressed issues of earlier legislation and offer effect to the provisions of the Convention signed.

Covid-19 And Its Effect On The Mental Health Of The People

During the coronavirus lockdown, the suicide rates,[v] domestic violence cases,[vi] et al. rose steadily. The sole reason behind this increase in crime rate was the mental health issues that individuals encountered as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. The pandemic forced everyone to share the same space and confined them in a ‘hostile’ home environment, which resulted in anxiety, stress, lack of motivation, and similar situations. Moreover, the problem further got aggravated with the lack of communication and interaction with friends and teachers. This can also be counted as one of the major reasons behind the increase in the suicide rate among students. Although there was an online medium to contact friends and teachers, yet the medium is not that comfortable during the initial days as well as even today meeting someone offline has a major psychological impact than online.

Studies reported that adolescents faced acute and chronic stress due to home confinement, having no access to sports/games/entertainment mechanisms except online mode, disruption of daily routine, excessive parental control and no access to friends, peer groups and teachers during the Covid-19 pandemic.[vii] Further, the Covid-19 gave a push to Online mode as a result of which everything in the meantime migrated from offline to online. However, this further exacerbated the scenario as individuals started excessively using social media increasing their screentime.[viii] There are a plethora of well-documented studies that showcase that excessive use of social media and/or the internet results in an increased level of psychological arousal causing an arbitrary release of hormones that further lead to little sleep, limited physical activity, depression, anxiety, stress, bad family/social relationships and other such mental problems.[ix]

Thus, this showcased the importance of mental health in day to day life of an individual. This makes it necessary to deliberate, discuss and analyse the Mental Health regime followed by India so as to decipher its lacunas and make it more compassionate towards mentally ill individuals.

Author:- Kaustubh Kumar, in case of any queries please contact/write back to us at support@ipandlegalfilings.com or   IP & Legal Filing.

REFERENCES

[i] Constitution of The World Health Organisation. Preamble (1946).

[ii] Constitution of The World Health Organisation. Preamble (1946).

[iii] Kabir Garg, et al., Number of psychiatrists in India: Baby steps forward, but a long way to go, Indian Journal of Psychiatry, vol. 61,1: 104-105 (2019).

[iv] 43% Indians suffering from depression: Study, The Times of India (July 28, 2020, 05:50 PM), https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/43-indians-suffering-from-depression-study/articleshow/77220895.cms.

[v] Madhumitha Nanditale Sripad, et al. Suicide in the context of COVID-19 diagnosis in India: Insights and implications from online print media reports. Psychiatry Research, vol. 298: 113799 (2021).

[vi] Nature-Wise Report of the Complaints Received by NCW in the Year : 2020, National Commission for Women, Government of India (2020), http://164.100.58.238/frmReportNature.aspx?Year=2020.

[vii] Suravi Patra & Binod Kumar Patro, COVID-19 and adolescent mental health in India, The Lancet Psychiatry, vol. 07, 12: 1015 (2020).

[viii] Jaffar Abbas, Dake Wang et al., The Role of Social Media in the Advent of COVID-19 Pandemic: Crisis Management, Mental Health Challenges and Implications, Risk Management and Healthcare Policy, vol. 14, 1917-32 (2021).

[ix] Seyyed Salman Alavi, Mohammad Reza Maracy, et al., The effect of psychiatric symptoms on the internet addiction disorder in Isfahan’s University students, Journal of research in medical sciences : the official journal of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, vol. 16, 06: 793-800 (2011).