New Delhi: The Governor of Karnataka Sh. Thawar Chand Gehlot on Monday, launched Tele Mental Health Assistance and Networking Across States (Tele-MANAS) initiative of Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on the occassion of World Mental Health Day.
The Government of India had announced National Tele Mental Health Programme (NTMHP) in the Union Budget 2022-23 acknowledging the mental health crisis in wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Government aims to open at least one Tele-MANAS Cell in each State/UT.
According to the statement released by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Tele-MANAS aims to provide free tele-mental health services all over the country round the clock. It particularly caters to people in remote or under-served areas.
The programme includes a network of 23 tele-mental health centres of excellence, with NIMHANS being the nodal centre and International Institute of Information Technology-Bangalore (IIITB) providing technology support. Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bengaluru and National Health Systems Resource Centre (NHRSC) will provide the technical support, the statement informed.
Tele-MANAS will be organised in two tier systems. The Tier 1 comprises of state Tele-MANAS cells which include trained counsellors and mental health specialists, the statement read.
Tier 2 will comprise specialists at District Mental Health Programme (DMHP)/Medical College resources for physical consultation and/or e-Sanjeevani for audio visual consultation. Presently there are 5 regional coordination centres along with 51 State/UT Tele MANAS cells, the statement further read.
The initial rollout providing basic support and counselling through centralized Interactive Voice Response system (IVRS) is being customised for use across all States and UTs.
According to the statement, the mentoring institutes are as follows: AIIMS, Patna, AIIMS Raipur, CIP Ranchi, AIIMS Bhopal, AIIMS Kalyani, AIIMS Bhubaneshwar, PGIMER, Chandigarh, Hospital for Mental Health, Ahmedabad, Gujarat, Inst. of Psychiatry and Human Behaviour Bambolim Goa, AIIMS, Nagpur, AIIMS, Jodhpur, KGMU Lucknow, AIIMS Rishikesh, IHBAS, Delhi, IGMS, Shimla, Psychiatric Diseases Hospital, Govt. Medical College, Srinagar, LGBRIMH, Tezpur, NIMHANS, Bengaluru, IMHANS, Kozhikode, Kerala, IMH, Chennai, IMH, Hyderabad, JIPMER and AIIMS, Mangalagiri.
States/UTs that launched Tele Mental Health Program on Monday included Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chhattisgarh, Dadra Nagar Haveli and daman and Diu, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Ladakh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
The Government is aiming to link Tele-MANAS with other services like National tele-consultation service, e-Sanjeevani, Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, mental health professionals, Ayushman Bharat health and wellness centres and emergency psychiatric facilities.