Why don't we care? | Vikram Patel | TEDxLSHTM

In 2015, Vikram Patel was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by TIME magazine. In this compassion-filled talk he discusses how approximately 90% of people affected by mental illness in low-resource communities go untreated because psychiatrists are in such short supply and health workers are often not trained in mental health. As he highlights how mental health is a neglected aspect of global public health, Vikram poses the question: Why don’t we care?

Vikram Patel is a psychiatrist with a primary interest in global mental health. In 2015, he was listed in the TIME 100 list of most influential people in the world. Vikram’s passion is to contribute to the goal of improving access to mental health care and promoting human rights of people with mental disorders. He was Founding and Joint Director of the Centre for Global Mental Health, and is now Joint Director of the Centre for Chronic Conditions and Injuries at the Public Health Foundation of India. Vikram is co-founder of Sangath, a NGO which collaborates with LSHTM in child development, adolescent and mental health. Sangath won the MacArthur Foundation’s International Prize in 2008. Vikram has been a leader in setting up the new Movement for Global Mental Health, a global coalition of professionals and civil society to improve lives of people affected by mental illness. Finally, Vikram authored “Where There Is No Psychiatrist", mental health manual for non-specialist health workers.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx