Speciality Departments
Department of
PSYCHIATRY
Overview
There is regular communication with the patients and care givers using digital platforms and telemedicine to improve the adherence and follow-up. We also use digital means to create and disseminate information about the illnesses and its prognosis both to the patients and the general population. The Department of Psychiatry has a state of art facilities for treatments like electroconvulsive therapy and bio feedback. Specific care has been taken for safety and to safeguard the confidentiality of the patients.
Healing minds by inspiring young professionals through education, research and holistic training in Psychiatry, to deliver best evidence-based humane care and innovative community programs to achieve better mental health and also eradicate the stigma associated with mental illness. “Don’t give in to stigma. A diagnosis does not determine who you are or what you can do!”
To deliver the highest quality care for individuals with mental illness, including substance use disorders, and their families with care ,concern and commitment. To develop and maintain high calibre educational research and clinical programs that advances the field of psychiatry and mental healthcare. To foster collaboration among all those who are concerned with medical, psychological, socio-cultural and legal aspects of mental health and illness. To improve the community standards of mental health and the mind-body connection between mental and physical health and also to eradicate the stigma associated with mental illness.
Programme Specific Outcomes
undergraduate teaching programme
- Ability to recognize and manage common psychological and psychiatric disorders in a tertiary care setting, institute preliminary treatment in disorders difficult to manage, and refer appropriately
- Ability to assess risk for suicide and refer appropriately and take steps to prevent it.
- Ability to recognize alcohol/ substance abuse disorders and refer them to appropriate centres
- Ability to promote mental health and mental hygiene
Postgraduate
- At the end of the MD course in Psychiatry, the postgraduate should be able to understand the relevance of mental health in relation to the health needs of the country.
- Ethical considerations in the teaching, research & practice of psychiatry.
- Take detailed history, conduct appropriate ethically valid physical examination and institute appropriate evaluation procedures to make a correct clinical diagnosis.
- Identify the social, economic, biological, emotional and environmental determinants of mental health
- Institute appropriate diagnostic, therapeutic and rehabilitative procedures to the mentally ill patient. Recommend appropriate laboratory and imaging examinations and interpret the results correctly
- Plan and deliver comprehensive treatment of a psychiatric patient using principles of rational drug therapy based on most recent clinical guidelines and rehabilitation of psychiatric patient suffering from chronic illness.
- Clinically manage psychiatric emergencies efficiently.
- Demonstrate empathy and humane approach towards patients and their families and respect their sensibilities.
- Demonstrate communication skills of a high order in explaining management and prognosis, providing counselling and giving health education messages to patients, families and communities.
- To develop skills in implementation of national mental health programs, effectively and responsibly, also to practice evidence-based psychiatry.
- Understand and implement the concept of essential drugs and rational use of drugs and legal issues in the practise of Psychiatry.
- To sensitise the postgraduates to the special requirements of Child, adolescent and Geriatric population.
- The student should know the basic concepts of research methodology and plan a research project in accordance with ethical principles. She/He should also be able to interpret research findings and apply these in clinical practice. She/He should know how to access and utilize information resources and should have basic knowledge of statistics.
- She/He should learn the basic methodology of teaching and develop competence in teaching medical/paramedical students, health professionals, members of allied disciplines (e.g. behavioural sciences), law enforcement agencies, families and consumers and members of the public.
Facilities
The department has
- Well-equipped and well-staffed Out-Patient Department.
- Psychological testing, Psychotherapy, Behavior therapy, EMG Bio feedback.
- 50 bedded free In-Patient Department (IPD) with male, female and pediatric beds.
- State of the art modified ECT room with EEG monitored Brief Pulse ECT machine, 32 Channel digital EEG & EMG biofeedback machine.
- Consultation – Liaison Psychiatric services
- Specialty Clinics – De-Addiction Clinic and Geriatric (Memory) Clinic.
- Undergraduate / Post-Graduate teaching takes place throughout the year.
- Excellent audio-visual aids for teaching purposes.
Research
PUBLICATION:
- Bindu Menon, Sandhya Cherkil, Aswathy S, Unnikrishnan A. G., Rajani G.The Process and challenges in the translation of World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL- BREF) to a regional Language – Malayalam, Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine, 2012, 34 (2), 149-152.
- Menon B. Hypothyroidism and bipolar affective disorder: Is there a connection?. Indian journal of psychological medicine. 2014 Apr;36(2):125.
- Bindu Menon, Seema Satish, Sandhya Cherkil. Common Mental Disorders -A Doctor’s Dilemma. Amrita Journal of Medicine, 2011, Vol. 7, 22-24.
- Gangadhar,n.Janakiramiah,Bindu Menon, ,P.J Nagavenkateshamurthy Electroconvulsive therapy. In JN Vyas & Ahuja N (Eds). Text book of Postgraduate psychiatry. 1999; 2nd edition; India: Jaypee Publications, 773-783.
- Menon B. Hypothyroidism and bipolar affective disorder: Is there a connection?. Indian journal of psychological medicine. 2014 Apr;36(2):125.
- Menon B. Towards a new model of understanding–The triple network, psychopathology and the structure of the mind. Medical hypotheses. 2019 Dec 1;133:109385.
- Kattimani S, Sarkar S, Kaliaperumal M, Sakey S, Vivek AK. Prevalence and profile of suicide attempters with abdominal pain as the reason of attempt: A retrospective study. J Mental Health Hum Behav 2016;21:32-5.
- Siddharth Sarkara,b,*, Sreekanth Sakeya, KaliaperumalMathana,c, Balaji Bharadwaja, ShivanandKattimania, Ravi P. Rajkumara. Assessing catatonia using four different instruments: Inter-rater reliability and prevalence in inpatient clinical population. Asian Journal of Psychiatry 23 (2016) 27–31.
- Mathan K. Demographic profile of patients with comorbid depression in COPD in a tertiary care center in south india–a discriptive study. International Journal of Scientific Research. 2019 Nov 6;8(10).
- Kattimani S, Sarkar S, Mukherjee A, Mathan K. What do suicide attempters think about legal status of suicide in India?. Indian journal of psychiatry. 2015 Jan;57(1):103.
- Menon V, Sarkar S, Kattimani S, Mathan K. Do personality traits such as impulsivity and hostility-aggressiveness predict severity of intent in attempted suicide? Findings from a record based study in South India. Indian journal of psychological medicine. 2015 Oct;37(4):393.
- Menon V, Kattimani S, Sarkar S, Mathan K. How do repeat suicide attempters differ from first timers? An exploratory record based analysis. Journal of neurosciences in rural practice. 2016 Jan;7(01):91-6.
- Siddharth Sarkar, Mathan K, Sreekanth ,Sakey, Subahani ,Shaik, Karthick, Subramanian, ShivanandKattimani. Cost-of-treatment of Clinically Stable Severe Mental lIlnesses in India.Indian J Soc Psychiatry 2017;33:262-8.
- Mathan K, Muthukrishnan V, Menon V. Olanzapineinduced tender pitting pre-tibial edema. J PharmacolPharmacother 2015;6:114-5.
- Arun Prasanna C, Mithun Prasad V. Alcoholism As TheMediating Factor Between Suicide And Risk Factors: A CaseControl Study,Int J Scientific Res.2019;8(6):27-9.
- Karthikeyan V U, Poornima C, Jayanandhini A, Mithun PrasadV, Tijo Ivan John, Ananthakrishnan V S,A retrospective study of prevalence of anxiety disorders in patients attending psychiatric outpatient department in a tertiary care hospital Glo J ResA.2017;10(6):33-6.
- Arun Prasanna C, Mithun Prasad V, Vivian Kapil V,Study of coping mechanisms and care giver’s burden in caregivers of persons with psychiatric illness. Glo J ResA.2019;8(5):23-6.
- ArunaB A, Kumar DSP, Agila D. Impact of Alcohol Dependence on Primary Caretaker in a Tertiary Care Hospital in Puducherry. In 2019.
ONGOING RESEARCH ACTIVITIES:
- Bindu Menon & C.P.Rabindranath- Capgras syndrome- A case report.(2020).
- Bindu Menon & Padma Priya- Executive functions in first degree relatives of alcohol dependence patient-A possible cognitive endophenotype?(2020-2021).
- Bindu Menon & Mathan.K- Stress and coping in medicos during quarantine – a qualitative study. (2020).
- Mathan.K & Swetha.G- Perceived stress among caregivers with medically unexplained physical symptoms- A cross sectional descriptive study. (2020-2021).
- Mathan.K & Sabari- Correlation between FEV1 and severity of depression in patients with COPD – A descriptive study. (2020-2021).
- Mathan.K & Barath.R – Pathway to care in patients with severe mental illness (2020-2021).
- Sathish & Mathan.K -Prevalence of Depression in CSOM- A descriptive Study (2019-2020).
- Mathan.K&Swetha.G – Frontal lobe dysfunction and its association with Intimate partner violence in alcohol dependent males(2019-2021).
- Mithun Prasad-CRP levels in Depressed Individuals (2020-2021 )
- R.Barath & C.P Rabindranath (Guided)-A comparison of sociodemographic and profile between deliberate self-harm and suicide survivors(2017-2020) .
- R.Barath, C.P.Rabindranath, Pooja & Mathan -Internet usage, Prevalence of internet addiction and its relation to sleep quality: a cross sectional study among medical students(2020).
- Swetha.G & C.P.Rabindranath (Guided)- Prevalence of domestic violence in the intimate partner of alcohol dependence patient in a tertiary hospital setting (2019-2021).
Awards
Barath.R 2nd Year PG Guided by Dr.C.P Rabindranath won Best Poster Award on “Carbamazepine induced Pemphigus Vulgaris” held at Venkateshwaraa medical and Research institute, Puducherry on 6th October 2019.
Outreach
Stress Management Skills workshop was conducted at Kalaingar Karunanidhi Govt HSC School on 20 Nov 2019 which was attended by 247 students.
Awareness programme on Effect of Substance in adolescent’s population was conducted on 14 Dec 2019 in school and colleges across Pondicherry which benefited more than 500 students.
Academic stress and its Management workshop were conducted at St. Joseph Higher Secondary School & St Mary’s sacred heart school on 28 Dec 2019 which was attended by 320 Students. School children were taught to cope with academic stress.
Stress and Work management workshop was conducted on Hindustan Unilever on 19 Oct 2019 which benefited more than 540 Participants.
Regular Monthly Destitute home visits had been conducted for the benefit of mentally challenged individual free consultation and medications are provided.
Events
- World Schizophrenia day celebrated on 25 May 2018 in the view of creating awareness among population.
- World Suicide prevention day celebrated on 10 Sep 2018 Quiz and role play had conducted to create awareness.
- Mental Health day celebration on 5 Oct 2018 Quiz, Fine art and role play was conducted.
- CME on Delirium-No Man’s Land conducted on 21 Feb 2019 for UG and PG students.
- World Suicide prevention day celebrated on 10 Sep 2019 Quiz, Mime, role play had conducted to create awareness.
- Mental Health day celebration on 5 Oct 2019 Quiz, Fine art, Role play was conducted CME on Deaddiction – Emerging Trends, Panel discussion, Quiz, Mime conducted on 6 Oct 2019 for Doctors, UG, PG Students.