Bhopal: In a significant stride towards improving mental health care in rural Madhya Pradesh, twenty Community Health Officers (CHOs) from Raisen District have successfully completed a four-day intensive training program at AIIMS Bhopal. Held from July 9th to 12th, 2024, this training was a part of the pilot testing of the Mental Health Workflow designed for screening, management, and referral of mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, severe mental disorders, and substance use disorders at the Ayushman Arogya Mandirs (Health and Wellness Centres).
Under the visionary leadership of Prof. (Dr.) Ajai Singh, Executive Director of AIIMS Bhopal, the institute has been a pioneer in training various cadres of healthcare workers across Madhya Pradesh. This training is a testament to AIIMS Bhopal’s commitment to enhancing healthcare delivery, particularly in rural areas, through both service delivery projects and research initiatives.
This training was conducted under the auspices of the “ICMR’s Multistate Implementation Research Study on Integration of Screening and Management of Mental and Substance Use Disorders with Other Non-Communicable Diseases (ICMR-MINDS)” project, funded by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
Prof. (Dr.) Ajai Singh highlighted the critical need for such research, emphasizing that it enables clinicians and health staff to identify and manage common mental health issues in patients with non-communicable diseases. He continually encourages faculty to pursue research that aims to improve health services and systems.
The AIIMS Bhopal research team comprises Dr. Anindo Majumdar, Associate Professor, Department of Community and Family Medicine; Dr. Roshan F Sutar, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry; Dr. Snehil Gupta, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry; Dr. Deepti Dabar, Associate Professor, Department of Community and Family Medicine; and Dr. Mudda Sofia, Medical Officer (Yoga), Department of AYUSH.
