Mental Health Challenges – The need of the hour

1. Mental health to allAn initiative empowering stakeholders & fostering health of the people, by the people & for the people An entrepreneurship project forming chain of rehabilitation centers providing employability to stakeholders Ishita Sanyal Saswata Sanyal India

2. Mental Health Challenges –The need of the hour Marginalization Unemployment or lack of meaningful engagement Homelessness The burden of illness on families Stigma & lack of awareness Lack of Professionals to handle crisis situation Inability to access treatment from remote areas Conflict amongst policy makers Isolation Violation of Human Rights

3. Mental Health Challenges in India According to NIMHANS over two crore persons in India are in need of treatment for serious mental disorder and five crore suffer from common mental disorder. Non Availability of professionals & Non Accessibility of medical facilities Stigma, neglect, lack of love & acceptance. Lack of awareness & lack of Psycho education amongst the family members of the sufferers. Conflict, Confusion & Condemning of sufferers Lack of rehabilitation center keeping in view the intellectual needs of the people suffering from MI. Lack of Self Help group. Huge economic pressure on the family member. No hope for the future Life confined to four walls of dark rooms. Hopelessness & Helplessness Huge treatment gap, with 50-90% people not able to access services, is a serious human rights issue.

4. The Project Idea To start a social enterpreneurship programme involving stakeholders, their family, the community where they live & also the educational institutions to make mental health accessible to all. A centralised training center would not only rehabilitate person suffering from mental illness but train the individuals to run small rehab cum cyber café & train others to open respective chain of centers.

5. Central Training Center New rehab cum cyber cafe New rehab cum cyber cafe New rehab cum cyber cafe New rehab cum cyber cafe New center New center New center New center New center New center New center New center

6. An entrepreneurship scheme – The innovation Involving- Stakeholders Their families The community The students The teachers Making new entrepreneurs To make health accessible at all parts At affordable cost Utilising the limited resource & Empowering the people suffering from illness It is Mental Health Of the people By the people For the people Developing a chain of networking with family members, stakeholders & community people

7. The Impact • After completion of rehab training they would be the trainers of the programme who would help other sufferers in the process of recovery& run cyber café under supervision & gain economic freedom • Every people can have access to health care, access to professional guidance without any hindrance caused by distance. • By community participation the inclusion of the disabled in to the society can be made possible. • The internet would also make it possible to get 24 hours specialist support for all. • Sharing of information would be possible not only locally but all over the world & we can keep volunteers from mental health field from all over the world. Patient –They will get the service, rehabilitation facilities at their doorstep at minimum cost & it would enable them to get employment or earn money & make them ecomomiclly & socially empowered. Engagement in work decreases their symptoms.

8. The Impact • Health care professionals-Prognosis & development depends not only on pharmacotherapy but effective management & handling of the person concerned. This project helps in it. Professionals can remain connected with everyone through internet. They can deliver services to more people as the people involved in this project is handling the minor crisis intervention & other necessities. Professionals are thus not bothered to look in to minor issues-but can together in this team get opportunity to reach more people. • Professionals from all over the world can lend some time & make this project a success.

9. The impact • Family members-Do not have to travel long distance for treatment. Become part of the treatment & learn to handle crtisis situation. Can contact professionals available online at any time & get a mental support. • Community-Initiating positive mental health to all, wiping away the stigma, getting the affected individual involved in the community as well as get a chance to be a part of the benevolent project • Policy makers-They are till now not able to differentiate between the need of MR & MI.They do not have needed change in the policy. This project would enable them to understand their role & duties & interact with policy makers & professionals world wide to know the latest change in treatment process. • Society-Involving family, community, policy makers & also educational institute helps to change the perception that is present till now in the society. Learning warning signals make the community to lend treatment whenever required. Community participation also wipe away the stigma & hence people opt for treatment more than they used to do previously. Positive mental health can also be inculcated in society. Internet acts as a scope to interact anytime with sufferers, family members & professionals.

10. Economic feasibility • Total Fixed cost-US$42098 • Total variable cost(2 Years)-US$50835 • Total cost-US$92934 Revenue generated From Pyramid training in 2 years-US$54717 Revenue from rehab-US$23889 Total-US$78605 So after third year we would reach the break even point

11. People involved It would have a ripple effect. From Single Central training center the people involved would be- • No. of people enrolled in 1st year-35 • No. of people enrolled in 2nd year-295 • No. of mentally challenged rehabilitated in 1st year-450 • No. of mentally challenged rehabilitated in 2nd year-1150 This is the minimum number that is calculated that too only if 1 in five person initiates a center. If Two in 5 people participate the number would be double.

12. Innovation & the health 2.0 Spirit Involving the professionals of the whole world Educational institutions • Professionals • Families • Community • Media • Corporate house • Policy makers • Doctors To make mental health awareness & best possible treatment available at the door step

13. Organisational feasibility • This enterpreneurship health project would give rise to a chain of enterpreneurs who are either stakeholders or their relatives or people from the community. • After training they would themselves run the organisation. • The Central training center would offer support whenever needed through internet & help the chain of centers to start up their projects as well as collect a revenue from them as part of consultation fees • They would also offer help to start up small centers in remote areas. • Support from professionals all over the world would also be available together with the scope of sharing everyday success & failures

14. Health to all • Mental health problems affect one in four people & so we have no time to overlook this giant problem otherwise a huge chunk of today’s society including the youth would be a burden on others. • They account for 19.5% of all disability-adjusted life-years. • This unique project can be a model project to make mental health care accessible for all at low cost & involving stakeholders & their family members to make them empowered ,bring social inclusion & provide a key to employment & meaningful engagement for the future. • The total expenditure done by one family is One lakh rupees/ year in India. So the total expenditure on 1150 people rehabilitated would be 1640000 Euro only which is far less than the expenditure to run this model rehabilitation cum cyber café center. This model would also give a return & would turn out to be profitable after three year.