PANJIM: The scene at the Institute of Psychiatry and Human Behavior (IPHB) isn’t like any hospital or health centre. There is a disproportionate rate between patients being admitted into the hospital and those being discharged.
In the seven-ward institute, each ward has 20 beds. But in most cases over 25 patients stay in one room. And why? It is sad and in some ways a reflection of the mindset of the society we live in. Their families refuse to take them back home even after they are medically certified to be released.
An employee at the institute on condition of anonymity confirmed this, saying that the reason for this overburdening of the facility with patients was because many of their families are refusing to take their relatives back home.
“There are some who are old, but there are young people too. And the problem is that even once they have been cured, family members don’t come to take them back,” said the employee. As per the institute’s policies, family members of an SPC patient admitted to the institute have to agree to a 90-day period stay at the institute.
Employees, however, said that this practice is just on paper. The situation is so bad that due to paucity of space, some patients are even forced to sleep on the ground.
Though 120 of the patients cured at the IPHB will be moved to a Chimbel asylum, senior doctors working at the institute say they will still continue to work towards tracking down their family members in the hope of returning the cured patients to their homes.
The agony and suffering of the patients can only be felt by walking around the institute as many try to put their lives back together again. The OT ward is one such place. Trainers in the field of embroidery, stitching and other fields help patients in learning new techniques that may help them when they’re out in the real world.
“We try to teach them things like stitching or making something with their hands so that when they go back home, they don’t have to solely rely on their family members for support but can live regular lives on their own,” said one trainer as she showed a patient how to do a cross stitch.
For many that work at the institute, a cured patient is the best sight. But despite their progress, having to stay in the same place is disheartening.
