“HEALTH IS WEALTH”

That was a banner I saw in Calcutta where I recently met up with a non-government organisation in the field of mental health called the National Institute of Behavioural Sciences which is a team of psychiatrists, psychologists, neurologists, GPs and social workers, headed by Dr. Banerjee who I spoke to at considerable length about the commonalities we face in terms of mental health issues like stigma, awareness raising and availability of treatment. After giving him a brief resume of my mental health CV, I outlined the voluntary work I was involved in back in Scotland with PLUS, SRN and See ME. We were equally keen to learn from each other’s knowledge bases.

I found out about the organisation through an internet search and was keen to find out how mental health was delivered here.
Dr. Banerjee was keen to capitalize on my visit and called in the media to interview me for Bengali TV news!! as well as a feature in a Health magazine. Every little bit of awareness raising we can do helps reduce the fear and ignorance surrounding mental illness. That fact is truly international…..

I was greatly encouraged by the progressive work being done by this particular organisation and impressed by Dr. Banerjee’s visionary and humanitarian skills as well as his style of consultations with users. I was asked to sit in on some (confidentiality not being an issue as it was conducted in Bengali!) and firstly I was both surprised and delighted to see that each person got a chocolate éclair from the large bowl sitting on his table! Consultants here please note!! Soft background music created a very relaxed atmosphere.

I learnt too of their initiatives to promote awareness of mental health through an annual motorbike rally of 300km distributing information leaflets to far-flung villages, education being key to understanding as here. However, there are two key differences I can see between India and the U.K. One involves the sheer size of the country and its dispersed rural populations. The other factor which has fortunately been banished here are the medieval notions of mental illness being a possession by evil spirits needing to be exorcised which leads to alienation in villages big time. Basically there are a lot more people to educate in India….

To reach as many people affected by mental illness as possible Dr. Banerjee and his team of workers regularly visit rural areas on mental health camps to see people who need professional help and try to educate the carers and other villagers who have a crucial role in somebody’s recovery.
The other approach is through a weekly live telecast broadcast on Bengali TV where users or carers can phone in for advice. A 24hr 7 day a week mobile hotline alleviates the stress of many and they promise no caller will ever encounter a busy signal or voicemail.

I mentioned before about Dr. Banerjee’s visionary qualities and I like to think I have some too so I broached the subject of a possible collaboration or exchange between Scotland and India. The response was very enthusiastic and we talked of a small team going across and being hosted by Bengali families so that it was a cultural experience too for those involved. We would only have to find funding for airfares.