Overview

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Department of Psychiatry Started in 1994

Department Medicine

List of Faculty

Overview:

Department of Psychiatry was started in February 1994 with inception of outpatient services in Polyclinic Sector 22. Inpatient services were started in the year 1996 after the joining of Dr. Priti Arun and Dr. B. S. Chavan. From the very beginning the department has given utmost priority to the quality of care and human resource development in the field of psychiatry. Department has been organized in such a way that psychiatric services are available round the clock and without a long waiting time. Department has also given primacy to include patients and their families in treatment planning. Through active community outreach programs, the department has been making constant efforts to reach out to the patients who dropped out from treatment as well as patients who do not seek treatment. Health education through pamphlets, video cassettes, articles in newspapers and radio talks is an integral part of the comprehensive treatment package. The department of Psychiatry is involved in quality research from the very beginning, organization of International and National Conferences, Workshops, CME, Symposia etc.

Services:

Adult Psychiatry Clinic:

Adult Psychiatry Clinic is run everyday in Psychiatry OPD, Level 4, Block B. The new patients can visit the Walk in Clinic ( Room No.4212) and are seen on the same day.  Detailed workup of the cases is done wherever is required with the aim to provide  comprehensive management. In OPD, a multi-disciplinary approach is followed for providing the best possible management to the patients

Child Guidance Clinic (CGC):

The Department of Psychiatry, GMCH started the Child Guidance Clinic in the year 1998. The services started with providing services to the child population have progressed to include the Adolescent population as well as per the need of the present times. The services encompass daily Walk-in Clinic, diagnostic and therapeutic services by Senior residents, Junior residents and two consultants (Dr. Priti Arun & Dr. Shivangi Mehta ) with Dr. Priti Arun heading the special clinic. The services provided include detailed diagnostic work-up, Psychotherapy, Play Therapy and Psychosocial services besides the assessments for certification (with liaison from other Departments-Pediatrics, ENT), Daily Outpatient and Inpatient services, and round the clock emergency services.

The CGC OPD is on Thursday 2pm -5 pm during which approximately 200 patients are catered to in a month.

The Department is also running the Autism Clinic on every Wednesday (9 AM to 1 PM) where cases are seen for assessment or intervention only with appointment.  The Department of Psychiatry runs parenting skills groups and parent group for ASD   regularly. The parents’ group for Autism is an open group being held on every second Saturday of the month (12 noon – 1 PM)

MD residents and M Phil students are posted in the clinic on regular basis, where they are encouraged to take up cases for therapy and follow up.

De-addiction Clinic:

The department of Psychiatry, GMCH is providing OPD, Indoor and Emergency services to the patients with Substance Use Disorders (SUDs). The new patients with SUDs can visit Walk-in Clinic (WIC), Room No. 4212, Psychiatry OPD, Level-4, Block-B on all the working days between 9am-1.00pm for the initiation of treatment for SUDs. The dedicated De-addiction Clinic (DAC) is on every Tuesday from 9am- 1.00pm in Room No. 4214 of Psychiatry OPD. Group Therapy sessions for patients and families of SUDs are also held on every Tuesday from 10am-11am.

There are dedicated 8 beds for patients with SUDs within the Psychiatry ward for indoor treatment.

Geriatric Mental Health Clinic (GMHC):

The Geriatric Mental Health Clinic (GMHC) was started in January, 2015 in the Department of Psychiatry, GMCH, Chandigarh. It was started with a view to offer exclusive, specialized and holistic care, including psychological support and consultation-liaison services, to the elderly with mental health problems residing in and around Chandigarh.

Elderly people who have anxiety, depression, memory problems, sleep disorders, substance abuse etc can seek help from this Clinic. At present the clinic runs every Saturday. This day was purposively chosen as Saturday is a public holiday in government offices in Chandigarh and it would facilitate the attendance of the elderly by allowing their caregivers to bring/accompany them on that day as many of the young/middle-aged caregivers are working in public sector.

Though the Clinic runs every Saturday, any elderly person seeking help can come to the Psychiatry OPD on any working day, i.e. Monday-Saturday for initial assessment by the Senior Resident (psychiatrist) posted in OPD of Psychiatry Department. Further detailed assessment is done in the Clinic by a team comprising of a consultant psychiatrist (in-charge), a consultant clinical psychologist, an MD psychiatry trainee (by rotation), and an M.Phil clinical psychology trainee (by rotation). There is an additional facility of referral to the psychiatric social work faculty placed in the OPD for assessment and management of psychosocial issues.

Marital and Sexual Clinic:

The marital and sexual clinic (MSC) was primarily initiated to address marital and sexual issues of individuals as well as couples. The MSC OPD is run by team of mental health professionals comprising of Psychiatrist and Clinical Psychologist on Fridays from 2 to 5 pm. The clinic also delivers services to individuals from sexual minorities (LGBTQIA) with varying orientations and identities. Specialized diagnostic and therapeutic services are offered for some of the common problems faced by persons including dhat syndrome, erection and ejaculation related concerns, vaginismus, dyspareunia, gender dysphoria, porn addiction etc.

Clinical Psychology Services:

Department of Psychiatry has full-fledged Clinical Psychology services available for the persons with Mental Health needs. Department is first in the northern region which has no waiting period in terms of psychological assessments and psychological interventions which are provided by the qualified clinical psychologists. Clinical Psychology services includes  psychological assessment and psychotherapies. Psychological assessment is available for Intelligence, Specific learning disorder, Diagnostic, Comprehensive Neuropsychological Assessment, Personality and Conflict Assessment etc.  Clinical psychology services has been providing almost all types of Psychotherapy for all mental health and psychosocial health related issues which includes, crisis intervention, supportive psychotherapy, behavior therapy, marital and sex therapy, relaxation therapies, biofeedback intervention, cognitive retraining, Cognitive behaviour therapy,  mindfulness based intervention and Psycho-educational services to the patients in general. Clinical psychologists are also providing these services to the GRIID, Nari Niketan, DMHP, JJ Home, Samarth, Ashray Home, DART etc.

Whenever required Clinical Psychologists team also conducts camps in different parts of the region in order to assess their disability and certifications at mass level. Clinical Psychology lab consist of all latest and culturally appropriate tests and equipment in order to provide state of art services to the people. In addition to providing services to mental health department also provide counselling services to the Oncology department for cancer patients. Department has a team of well experienced three Faculties, Five Clinical Psychologists, Two counsellor, one assistant clinical psychologist, and one play therapist. For IQ assessment and psychological intervention person has to register himself or herself in psychiatry and after brief workup directly referred to Clinical Psychology Services and the service is provided on same day. Services are run on daily basis from 9 am to 1pm.

 

Behaviour Therapy Unit:                                                                     

The Department of Psychiatry has a Behaviour Therapy unit that provides mental health services including behaviour therapy (BT), cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) and third wave therapies such as DBT, ACT and mindfulness-based interventions. The trainees of the Department are posted in BT unit aiming at exclusive training in psychotherapies.

 

Psychiatric Nurse Led Intervention Clinic (PNLIC):

The clinic runs 3 days in a week on Mon, Wed, and Friday from 9.00am to 1.00 pm at room no.4224 OPD, Dept. of Psychiatry. Trained mental health nursing faculty is responsible for its overall functioning. The clinic was started to combat the physical especially cardio-metabolic comorbidities in patients with SMI. The consultant psychiatrist refers patients to the clinic for the interventions targeted at identification of risk factors through timely screening and provision of lifestyle interventions.

Psychosocial Intervention Clinic(PSI):

OPD based Psychosocial Intervention Clinic is functioning since 2016 along with various other PSI programmes. The clinic runs all working days (Monday to Saturday) in a week from 9.00 am to 1.00 pm at room no. 4222 OPD, Department of Psychiatry. One faculty of PSW faculty and a trained PSW are responsible for its overall functioning. The consultant psychiatrist refers patients to the clinic for the interventions. A wide range of psychosocial interventions are conducted at the clinic: psychosocial assessment, counselling and psychosocial interventions.

Improvisation of services during COVID19 pandemic

  1. Telepsychiatry: Telepsychiatry services provide consultation via phone for patients with mental health issues. It is available from 9am to 1pm from Monday to Saturday on P.No. 9517771745
  2. Telemanas: Telemanas is an e-helpline mental health service which is available 24*7.

Day care in OPD

Day care services for patients with mental health issues are also available in OPD on all working days from 9AM-5PM and 9AM-1.00PM on Saturday. The facilities includes handy indoor games like Carrom board, Snakes-ladders, drawing etc.

Community Psychiatry Services:

The department has always given highest priority to the community out-reach services since its inception. The first community service was started in Gurudawara at Palsora village. After that new villages were added. Currently department is providing community out-reach services at three places adjoining Chandigarh viz Dhanas, Maloya and Police line dispensary- sector-26. The community team which comprised of psychiatrist, resident doctor, clinical psychologist, medical social worker and staff nurse examines patients at these places on weekly basis and dispense medicines. The department also organizes 7 days indoor de-addiction camp annually in the villages of Chandigarh with the help of local Panchayat after prior screening and identification of patients. In addition to indoor camps, department is also holding one day OPD camps in the community every month to enrol new patients with mental health issue and substance use disorders.

Schedule of Community Outreach Clinics (COCs) from 9.30AM-12.30PM

Tuesday-            Dhanas

Wednesday-       Maloya

Thursday-          26-Police line dispensary

In addition to above community outreach service, the community team also visits Burail Jail and Pingalwara Ashram on alternate Friday.

District Mental Health Programme (DMHP):

District Mental Health Programme (DMHP) was launched by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Govt. Of India under the National Mental Health Programme (NMHP) in the year 1996. The Department of Psychiatry, Govt. Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Chandigarh is running DMHP programme since November 2015 and this programme is under the administrative control of Mental Health institute, Chandigarh since July 2018 at RHTC, sector 56, Chandigarh. Department of Psychiatry, Govt. Medical College and Hospital and   Mental Health Institute, Chandigarh has prioritized community services to the service-deprived areas of UT, Chandigarh, thus is providing mental health care to the patients with mental health issues and substance use disorders (SUDs) .The primary purpose of DMHP is to make mental health care accessible to all by setting up psychiatric services in peripheral areas, to train primary health care personnel and to involve the community in promotion of mental health care. This is a community based Mental Health Programme in which awareness among community regarding management of mental health problems and disorders is emphasized by a DMHP team (Psychiatrist, clinical psychologist, psychiatric social worker, staff nurse) and referral linkage with other multidisciplinary services provided by department of psychiatry, GMCH, Chandigarh and mental health institute, (MHI) Chandigarh in this region. It has been suggested that the basic mental health care i.e. detection and management of all cases should be decentralized and integrated with general health care services.  In order to create awareness in the community, multi-media awareness techniques are used including pamphlet distribution, loudspeaker announcement. Regular follow up of the patients is ensured through field home visits and telephonic calls by psychiatric social worker. Regular OPD services with comprehensive treatment with free distribution of all types of medicines and non- pharmacological interventions are provided to the patients.

Half Way Home (HWH):-

Half Way Home (HWH) was started under the aegis of Mental Health Institute(MHI)at DART building on 10.10.2020 with a capacity for 10 patients (5 male and 5 female patients). Half Way Homeis the next step after hospitalization phase is over, and when the patient has stabilized on medication. A half-way home, as the name suggests, is a transient place of stay between the hospital and the person’s home. Half-way homes function as ‘Rehabilitation Homes’, because the whole emphasis is to prepare the patient to lead a more independent life within the family and/or in the community.

Besides providing the basic facilities such as shelter, food etc., all residents of HWH are supervised for medications, activities of daily living, social skills training, cognitive enhancement therapy, soft skills training, vocational training etc.  Further all attempts are made so that the residents are able to obtain open employment as financial independence is considered the first step of becoming independent and also gives a huge boost to the community. Some hobby classes for the residents, based on their individual interest, such as dance class, arts and crafts classes etc. are also organized to improve quality of life. The residents are provided a safe, secure, non-stigmatizing and socially inclusive environment to flourish that helps in building their self-esteem.  The overall aim of all interventions, activities and supervision is to prepare the persons with mental illness to re-integrate into the society. 

Psychiatry Ward

    psy ward south campus 1psy ward south campus 2

Inpatient services of the department are being run at South Campus, Sector 48, Chandigarh, with bed strength of 42, which includes beds for adult psychiatry patients (male & female), SUDs and  the child and adolescent patients.  Daily rounds are taken by the team of mental health professionals. Facilities and activities include daily morning prayer and exercises, recreational facilities consisting of television, indoor games, book/magazines/newspaper and weekly staff meetings with patients and their relatives. Patients with mental illness and substance abuse are admitted in the ward for short periods, in accordance with the guidelines provided by MHCA, 2017.

Additionally, follow up OPD services are also started at South Campus, GMCH, Sector-48 for patients who got discharged from Psychiatry Ward.

Consultation Liaison services:

Department is providing 24 hours services for psychiatry emergencies as well as routine psychiatric consultations for inpatients and outpatients of other specialities at GMCH.

State Resource centre:

The office of SRC is presently located in the Department of Psychiatry. Regular monthly camps are conducted under SRC in community for identification of persons with disability and certificates are issued. 

Rehabilitation Services via NGOs Parivartan, Umeed and Prayatan:

Vocational rehabilitation for the persons with intellectual disability (ID) and mental illnesses has been taken up by the department in a very novel and unique way. A number of kiosks (snack huts/ juice bars) have been set up in different locations across Chandigarh providing employment to such persons under supervision of guardians of persons with disability.

Government Rehabilitation Institute for Intellectual Disabilities (GRIID) :

www.griid.edu.in

Teaching:

Department has given a high priority for teaching undergraduate medical students. Training is provided to Medical undergraduates as per MCI. It includes both theory lectures and clinical classes   


RESEARCH & MANPOWER DEVELOPMENT

Research Priority of the department in the field of research is to design cost effective and innovative intervention strategies which can be implemented with minimum expertise as well as to study the financial and social impact of mental disorders.

Human resource development: From the very beginning, department has given priority to Human Resource Development (HRD) in the field of Psychiatry. Department has been running following courses:

  1. MD Psychiatry: The Postgraduate course in Psychiatry (MD Psychiatry) was started in 2005 and is recognized from MCI. The number of seats for this course was increased from 1 to 2 in 2009 and overtime, the number of postgraduate seats has increased to 8 every year.  currently the department has 24 postgraduate(MD) students.

 

  1. MPhil Clinical Psychology: Department of Psychiatry is successfully running M.Phil Clinical Psychology Course since 2011 with annual intake of eight students. M.Phil Course is Recognised by Rehabilitation Council of India and affiliated to Panjab University, Chandigarh.

 

  1. MPhil Psychiatric Social Work: Department runs a two year M. Phil course in Psychiatric Social Work with 8 seats every year.

4. M.Sc. Mental Health (Psychiatric) Nursing:

M.Sc Mental Health (Psychiatric) Nursing course under COE has been given NOC by Chandigarh Administration and the syllabi and rules and regulations have been approved by Panjab University and hence the course is expected to start in this academic year.

Apart from this Department has been involved in education programmes for Medical officers, caregivers and other stake holders from time to time.

Various training programmes for Medical Officers, School teachers, Anganwadi workers, Community Rehabilitation Workers (CBRWs), caregivers of persons with mental illnesses are being held regularly under various activities of the department of Psychiatry.

Training of GDMOs under National Fund of control of drug abuse (NFCDA) in collaboration with AIIMS, Delhi.

DISABILITY ASSESSMENT REHABILITATION & TRIAGE (DART)/ MENTAL HEALTH INSTITUTE( MHI)

Despite advancement in pharmacological treatment, large number of patients continue to have deficit in cognitive, social and vocational areas and these deficits interfere in rehabilitation and long -term outcome.

Disability Assessment Rehabilitation and Triage (DART) service was started on 31st December, 2012 for providing need based non pharmacological services for the patients of chronic mental disorders who have recovered from acute phase of illness, but still have significant deficit in social, cognitive and vocational skills. In Feb 2017 inpatient rehabilitation services were started initially in the DART building but later on shifted to Mental Health Institute (MHI). Currently the same has 40 beds for rehabilitation and these are used as teaching beds by Department of Psychiatry. DART/MHI is designed to have following service components


Neurocognitive Rehabilitation Clinic

Clinical neuropsychology is a specialty in psychology that examines the relationship between behaviour and brain functioning in the realms of cognitive, motor, sensory, and emotional functioning. Neuropsychological assessment in patients suffering from chronic psychiatric illness is essential for determining the cognitive dysfunction and then to plan rehabilitation strategies. Potential cases of suspected organic illness, traumatic brain injuries, dementia, and cognitive impairments due to chronic mental illness etc are referred from the Department of Psychiatry, GMCH to DART. These patients have impairment in attention, memory, concentration, higher executive functions and so on. As a result of this, they find their day to day activities very difficult.

At the DART, these patients are assessed by a multidisciplinary team. Cognitive skill training is provided for enhancing cognitive skills. Various computer-based programmes are also used for improving the deficits.

Social Skills Clinic

Due to chronic illness, the patients have to re-learn many of the social skills like greeting people politely, how to initiate conversation, to maintain eye contact while talking, expressing gratitude etc. Social skills training is very useful in such situation. It is a structured, concrete treatment intended for individuals who suffer from severe and persistent symptoms. Social skills Training consists of behaviourally based instruction, modelling, corrective feedback, and contingent social reinforcement aimed to improve social competence through the acquisition of social skills, self-care and independent living skills. After complete assessment, social skill training sessions are being conducted in order to achieve the competence in the conversational skills. The social skills training package at DART include training in Basic social skills, Conversation skills, Assertiveness, Conflict management, Health and maintenance.

Vocational Rehabilitation Clinic

The patients with mental illness find it very difficult to get new jobs or to continue with their present occupation. Most of them even find difficulty to perform even day to day life activities. In this regard, Vocational Rehabilitation strategy for these patients is necessary and helpful as it helps them to develop and restore functional capacity, achieve functional independence and even get employment. In DART, vocational rehabilitation (outpatient and in-patients) for persons with mental illness in a variety of trades viz. Masala grinding and packaging unit, Cutting & tailoring unit, Art & crafts unit, Jute products making unit, Nursery and gardening unit, Computer training unit, Kitchen and bakery unit etc. The training gives great boost to the self-confidence of patients and many are able to shift to competitive employment in the open market. Those who continue to learn and work under sheltered workshop environment are also provided remuneration through the NGO Parivartan.

Placement Cell: Placement cell is run by medical social workers at DART/MHI to facilitate employment of persons with mental illness. Patients who get employed through placement cell are regularly followed up at their workplace to ensure continuity.

Crisis  resolution  and  home  based  treatment (CRHT): There are large numbers of persons suffering from mental illness who lack insight and do not feel the need to seek treatment despite being violent or aggressive and other myriad of reasons. Family members fail to convince them to seek treatment. In order to fill -up this gap, CRHT services facilitate treatment of the patients at hospital or in the home setting according to MHCA-2017.  

Day care: Day care at DART provides a structural routine to the patients and helps in improvisation of activities of daily living with help of various interventions. Day care also offers bus services to the patients.

Disability clinic: Disability clinic comprises of a disability board for assessment and certification of disability and in addition to this information regarding the disability benefits are imparted to the patients and their caregivers.

Occupational Health Services(OHS) :  OHS provides services to those experiencing mental health issues that can impact/has impacted their functioning at workplace, experiencing stress and mental health problems at work place, facing stigma/discrimination at workplace due to mental illness, facing stigma/discrimination at workplace due to disability related to mental illness. OHS is provided in MHI. An offshoot of OHS, trainee drop in centre (TDC) caters to trainees of various specialities and MBBS students of GMCH.

TRAINEE DROP-IN CENTRE (TDC)

The department is also running specialized mental health services for trainees and students of GMCH known as trainee drop in centre on every Thursday 2 pm to 5 pm, ground floor, opposite MRD. This service is run by Psychiatrist, Clinical Psychologist and counsellors and addresses the needs of students or trainees facing any mental health related issues, or requiring counselling. GMCH Students with mental health issues like stress, anxiety, insomnia, adjustment issues etc are referred to this clinic.  Both pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment is provided.