E-Paper
Long-stay persons with disabilities at Yerawada Mental Hospital await rehabilitation
The Regional Mental Hospital in November last year started mass rehabilitation of inmates who have been cured but living at the hospital for over a decade
With not a single centre in the state to rehabilitate persons with disabilities recovered from mental health issues as many as 25 long-stay patients at the Regional Mental Hospital, Yerawada have nowhere to go.
The Regional Mental Hospital in November last year started mass rehabilitation of inmates who have been cured but living at the hospital for over a decade.
A total of 239 patients living for over a decade and no family were shortlisted. Of which 214 long-stay patients 123 are female and 54 male were rehabilitated. However, 25 long-stay inmates with disabilities, 15 male and 8 female were refused to be accepted by rehabilitation as they need special care, said officials.
Dr Sunil Patil, medical superintendent, Regional Mental Hospital, said the rehabilitation centres refused to accept them claiming they don’t have the facilities to provide special care and attention to the inmates.
“We inquired with several other rehabilitation centres but there is not a single rehabilitation centre that will accept these inmates living with disabilities,” he said.
The Regional Mental Hospital officials informed that they have written to the state mental health authority, persons with disabilities welfare department and social welfare department asking for assistance.
The issue will be discussed in the next meeting scheduled on Wednesday to address the problem of rehabilitation of recovered mental health patients living with disabilities, said officials.
Dr Patil said, the government is working on it as similar problems are being faced by other mental hospitals of the state.
“These inmates include patients with vision impairment, hearing impairment, and locomotor impairment amongst other impairments. These inmates are staying at the hospital despite having recovered from mental health illnesses and fit to be discharged. They are mostly unknown patients admitted by police, social workers or by orders of the court,” he said.
