IPS forms mental health task force in Karnataka for physicians

Bengaluru: The Indian Psychiatric Society has formed a task force to assess the mental health of physicians and other health workers in Karnataka to address the mental and emotional issues arising due to their work in the pandemic.

The task force named “Dr For Drs” is being headed by Arun Kandasamy, Additional Professor of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health & Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS).

He said that physicians are facing many issues regarding the virus and its management adding to that are the number of deaths that they had to see and certify. All of these are causing a huge strain on their mental health.

NIMHANS had last year started a national helpline specifically for physicians – 80-46110007.

Additionally, the Indian Medical Association’s Karnataka Chapter too created a dedicated program, “Vaidya Manovani,” to exclusively cater to the pschological issues of doctors.