Siddharth Sarkar, Kaushik Sinha Deb, Rohit Verma, Swati Kedia Gupta,
All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi – 110029, India
Abstract:
Social psychiatry aims to integrate the knowledge of social determinants of mental health, cultural nuances embedded in the healthcare context, and social interventions to improve the outcomes of individuals with mental health problems. While social aspects of the practice of psychiatry have been well acknowledged, implementation in the usual clinical practice requires consideration of the cultural context and the expectations from the healthcare system. In this symposium, we reflect upon the application of the principles of social psychiatry in the clinical context in India. The first speaker would discuss the application of social psychiatry in the field of addiction, focusing on the engagement of clients and using social capital to promote recovery and effectuate relapse prevention. The second speaker would discuss the application of social psychiatry while handling cases being referred from other medical and surgical departments. The pertinent social psychiatric elements of case conceptualization and interventions in the field of psychosomatics in a general hospital setting would be discussed. The third speaker would be discussing the application of social psychiatry in the clinical training of residents and medical students, especially in the context of rapid advances in biological psychiatry and neuromodulation. The context of the case of the trainee’s expectations and experience would be highlighted. The fourth speaker would discuss the social psychiatric aspects at play in the context of geriatric mental healthcare. The pragmatic social issues in mental health care provision and client engagement will be discussed. The presentations aim to be part experiential and part evidence-based, bringing out the role of being cognizant of social psychiatric aspects in the clinical care processes.
Dr Siddharth Sarkar
Leave a Reply