E-Paper
YCMH counselling centre provides a healing touch to mental health during pandemic
Santre informed that more than motivational counselling, people are in need of proper guidance.
The Covid-19 infection comes packaged with fear and myth that often puts the immediate family, relatives of a positive patient at a high risk of mental stress.
The Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital (YCMH) has established a counselling centre for the relatives of positive patients to help them recover from the fear of the infection. The YCMH counsels 50 to 60 people every day, the centre is run by Real Life Real People – an NGO which has been associated with the hospital for the past 10 years.
According to Dr Manjeet Santre, head of the department of psychiatry at YCMH, a lot of people believe in misconceptions.
“Covid is equal to death, this is the mentality of most people when their family member is hospitalised. This is a totally wrong assumption of Covid and with our interaction, we try to change this assumption,” Santre said.
Santre informed that more than motivational counselling, people are in need of proper guidance.
“In the current scenario people don’t need motivation, they require guidance as there are several myths about the Covid disease,” he added.
A team of 25 people is tasked with counselling people every day at the hospital.
“Most of the people started to fear coronavirus after their family member is admitted to the hospital. Giving them confidence that the patient will recover and nothing will happen is the duty of the counselling centre,” said MA Hussain, administrator of the counselling centre.
According to Hussain, the NGO also provides updates about patients’ health over the phone.
“Since a large number of people are not allowed at the hospital, the health status of patients is explained to family members over the phone,” added Hussain.
One of the important aspects of the counselling centre is safeguarding the mental health of its patients.
“First I thought, it will be waste of time to get in contact with the patient’s relative counselling centre but consultation with one of the psychiatrist is keeping me mentally strong and developing confidence about my relative’s recovery,” said Bismil Shaikh whose uncle is getting treated for Covid at YCMH.
Real Life Real People also works in other departments at YCMH to help patients who don’t have immediate family to take care of them.
Box
Warriors on Duty
Dr Mahadev Bhotre, Dr Kundlik Amle, Dr Prakash Junkatwar, Dr Ravindra Dhawle, Dr Kisan Gaikwad, Dr Lata Sonkar – Three of them are always present at the patient’s relative counselling centre. They can be contacted on 020 67332297.
