National Mental Health Policy | Indian mental health policy | Mental Health Policy 2014 | India

National Mental Health Policy of India 2014

The policy aims to enhance awareness and understanding about mental health and strengthening leadership in the mental health sector at all levels. It will have a pro-poor orientation because only the creamy layer of society presently has access to mental healthcare in India, the minister said.

Vision

The vision of the National Mental Health Policy is to promote mental health, prevent mental illness, enable recovery from mental illness, promote destigmatization and desegregation, and ensure socio-economic inclusion of persons affected by mental illness by providing accessible, affordable and quality health and social care to all persons through their life-span within a rights-based frame work.

Goals of the policy

To reduce distress, disability, exclusion morbidity and premature mortality associated with mental health problems across life span of the person.

To enhance understanding of the mental health in the country.

To strengthen the leadership in the mental health sector at the national, state and district levels.

Objectives of the Policy

To provide universal access to mental health care.

To increase access to and utilisation of comprehensive mental health services by persons with mental health problems.

To increase access to mental health care especially to vulnerable groups including homeless persons, persons in remote areas, educationally, socially and deprived sections.

To reduce prevalence and impact of risk factors associated with mental health problems.

To reduce risk and incidence of suicide and attempted suicide.

To ensure respect for rights and protection from harm of persons with mental health problems.

To reduce stigma associated with mental health problems.

To enhance availability and equitable distribution of skilled human resources for mental health.

To progressively enhance financial allocation and improve utilisation for mental health promotion and care.

To identify and address the social, biological and psychological determinants of mental health problems and to provide appropriate interventions.

Higher investment in mental health care is justifiable because the economic benefits of effective, equitable, and accessible care far outweigh cost of disability and loss of livelihood due to mental illness.

Finally, the policy acknowledges a wide range of mental health goals from promotion of mental health to long-term needs of persons with enduring mental health problems.