Prevention and Intervention of Mental Health Problems in Primary Care

The mental health and illness is identified as one of the most pressing health concerns of the 21st century. Many studies show that Neuropsychiatric disorders account for substantial count of Disability-Adjusted Life Years out of total DALYs for all disorders. It is estimated that by the year 2020, depression will become second leading cause for disease burden. Approximately 24 percent of the patients visiting the primary health care physician suffer from well defined ICD-10 mental disorder and 69 percent of them remain undiagnosed. Hence, it is essential that we must have adequate preventional and interventional mental health services rooted in primary care. The present study will facilitate in identification of potential individuals with disorders and extent of needed care at primary level in the Indian context.

Working as HMIS Fellow, National Health Systems Resource Center, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.Graduated in Public Health with specialization in Social Epidemiology from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai.