The 2017 Mental Healthcare Act says that a patient can’t be forced to get admitted to a hospital and that they have the right to refuse treatment (except in severe cases). However, the Act remains silent on what the caregiver should do in such cases.
The caregiver has been forgotten.
The policy does not say anything or give any right to the caregiver. There is an urgent need to add caregivers to the mental health care act.
CAREGIVERS IGNORED
In India where 90 per cent of psychiatric patients live with their families, caregivers are still largely ignored.
According to the recent report published in the Journal of Neurosciences in Rural Practice, the burden of caregiving is higher for spouses.
Providing care for more than five years increased the odds of severe burden to 2.37 times as compared to those who provided care for 1-2 years.
INSURANCE COMPANIES
Over the last decade, India has made huge strides in dragging mental health into mainstream conversations. It’s now part of HR policies in the corporate sector, and under the Mental Healthcare Act, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has even made it compulsory for insurance companies to include mental health coverage. But everything, the National Mental Health Programme and the decentralised District Mental Health Programme, tends to zoom in on the patient.
In the context of Indian family structure and dynamics and working in the Indian community, experts feel that without suitable amendments to include the family’s concerns, the present Act would stand as an alien Western law enforced on Indian cohesive family dynamics.
Demand for separate Act for care givers, one that will offer financial support, helplines and counselling services tailored to their needs; incentives to NGOs who specialise in this area, and an acknowledgement of an ageing population is the need of the hour.
A caregiver system has to be developed along the lines of countries like Canada and the United Kingdom. These countries have a well-oiled ecosystem of paid caregivers and have specific schemes for them.
Though these things don’t help the caregivers directly but even if they benefit the patient, it would be a big help for the caregivers.
