San-Ker Academy & Research Centre, Shillong

Orientation Visit to
SAN-KER ACADEMIC & RESEARCH CENTRE
Mawroh, Shillong – 793008, Meghalaya

 Orientation Date : 9th September 2011 (Friday)
 Time: 10.30 AM to 12.00 Noon

About San-Ker

IGNOU Regional Centre Shillong has a network of 67 learner support centres all over the State of Meghalaya. Out of these 18 are Regular Study Centres, 37 Programme Study Centres and 12 Special Study Centres.1

There is only one Mental Health Facility in the private sector. This is SANKER Hospital situated at Mawroh, Shillong 793008, Meghalaya which is about 1km away from Shillong Golf Course and can be reached by vehicle as the pitched road reach up to the hospital. The hospital is beautifully situated in large area surrounded by pine trees in the very congenial condition.

The Founder Father of this hospital is Dr. Sandy Syiem who himself is a reputed Psychiatrist. He himself administrates and monitors the hospital passionately.

Mental Health Facilities: -

There are 58 nos. of beds for male patients and 24nos. of bed for female patients. The OPD services are hold on daily basis and emergency services are also handled by the duty Doctors working 24hrs.

Also Provided

• Specialized De-Addiction Services.
• OPD Rehabilitation Services.
• Specialized Geriatric/Children Services.
• Portable water/toilet/Canteen for patients & relatives.
• Separate dining facilities.
• Interview Room available to speak with patients.
• Also provided are breakfast, lunch, tea and dinner for patients.

Medicines

All types of medicines required for the OPD (Out Patient Services) & IPD (Indoor Patient Services) patients are available namely antipsychotic, antidepressant, anxiolytic, mood stabilizer.

Training & Academic Activities

The Institute carry out CME Programmes and Seminars in periodic basis. The Institute also train General Nurses of various Nursing School of Shillong in Psychiatry.

Investigative Procedure

Psycho diagnostic tools. Improvement of the inmates is judge with their co-operation with the counsellors. San-ker have 6 different wards where the inmates are transfer from ward no. 1, 2, 3 and so on according to their improvement. Three months course is being conducted by San-ker   for the rehabilitation of the mentally ill inmates. The average time taken to recover normally takes 2-3 months depending on the intensity of the illness.

Staff Patterns

Psychiatrist – 2
General Medical Officer – 1
Clinical Psychologist – 1
Psychiatric Social Worker – 1
General Nurses – 10
Occupational Therapist – 1
Counsellors – 2

The Institute is praised by the patients and relatives of the patients of faraway places and nearby places.

Preocess

The whole MSW-I class moved down to San-Ker Hospital with a hired bus from MLCU main office. As soon as we occupied the seats at San-ker Conference Hall, Dr. Sharma, a Psychiatrist lectured us different kinds of sickness and its symptoms. After lecturing what she thinks that is necessary for us to know, we were taken into the common room of the inmates, where we were told the stratification of the inmates from one steps to another steps depending on their improvement. Then, we were given the chance to interact with the inmates for around thirty minutes, again we enter the conference hall for the second briefing and the left for home.

Learnings

Mental Illness is like any other illness: Even if mental illness doesn't affect you directly, the chances are that it affects someone you know or care about. Each of us needs proper information to put mental illness in a correct perspective. This is because there is a lot of misconception and misinformation in our society about mental illness. The fact is that mental or emotional disorders affect millions and millions of people. When we have a mental or an emotional disorder we need others' understanding, support, and care just as we do when we have a physical illness. Mental illnesses are highly treatable. Psychological therapies, on average, take about six hourly meetings. About eighty per cent of people feel better with just six hours of treatment! It is patently false that "once mentally ill always mentally ill" No, it doesn't take years of treatment to feel better, in most of the cases.

Symptoms of Mental Illness: Mental illness can be classified as Neurotic sickness, Psychotic sickness and Phobia disorders with different kinds of symptoms. A person is said to suffer from a mental disorder, if he/she has hallucinations, hears voices or even senses things that actually do not occur in real life. The symptoms of the mental breakdown differ from person to person. The patient might also hear someone say something, when there is no one presenting reality. They tend to become obsessive about doing something harmful to themselves or any one nearby. They also start to feel that they are being victimized or persecuted by others whereas this phenomenon does not happen. They start having the feelings of extreme responsibility or excessive elaborateness or unnecessary strong envy. The other symptoms include strange speech patterns that are not comprehensible because it is strangely organized and presented. The patients show strange kinds of behaviors that turn out to be bizarre such as odd body movements or disrobing behavior in public.

Drug Abuse and Addiction: Some people are able to use recreational or prescription drugs without ever experiencing negative consequences or addiction. For many others, substance use can cause problems at work, home, school, and in relationships, leaving you feeling isolated, helpless, or ashamed.

Signs of Addiction: People experiment with drugs for many different reasons. Many first try drugs out of curiosity, to have a good time, because friends are doing it, or in an effort to improve athletic performance or ease another problem, such as stress, anxiety, or depression. Use doesn’t automatically lead to abuse, and there is no specific level at which drug use moves from casual to problematic. It varies by individual. Drug abuse and addiction is less about the amount of substance consumed or the frequency, and more to do with the consequences of drug use. No matter how often or how little you’re consuming, if your drug use is causing problems in your life - at work, school, home, or in your relationships - you likely have a drug abuse or addiction problem. As long as you control over the substance, you are just the user. But, when the substance control over you, you are an addict.

Symptoms of Addiction

• You’ve built up a drug tolerance. You need to use more of the drug to experience the same affects you used to attain with smaller amounts.
• You take drugs to avoid or relieve withdrawal symptoms. If you go too long without drugs, you experience symptoms such as nausea, restlessness, insomnia, depression, sweating, shaking, and anxiety.
• You’ve lost control over your drug use. You often do drugs or use more than you planned, even though you told yourself you wouldn’t. You may want to stop using, but you feel powerless.
• Your life revolves around drug use. You spend a lot of time using and thinking about drugs, figuring out how to get them, and recovering from the drug’s effects.
• You’ve abandoned activities you used to enjoy, such as hobbies, sports, and socializing, because of your drug use.
• You continue to use drugs, despite knowing it’s hurting you. It’s causing major problems in your life - blackouts, infections, mood swings, depression, paranoia - but you use anyway.

Physical warning signs of drug abuse

• Bloodshot eyes, pupils larger or smaller than usual.
• Changes in appetite or sleep patterns. Sudden weight loss or weight gain.
• Deterioration of physical appearance, personal grooming habits.
• Unusual smells on breath, body, or clothing.
• Tremors, slurred speech, or impaired coordination.

Interaction with the Inmates

Moving around the general ward with an unusual behaviour, Mr. Vikash, a 19 years old boy from Mawlai was admitted three days ago, when asked, he told me that he was admitted due to stomach ached. It shows that he himself does not realize he is suffering from mental sickness.

Another day care inmate, Mr. Madapsiang, who had undergone 10 days rehabilitation process as a day care patient said, he is aware of why he have to go a treatment process, he knows that he is suffering from menal illness which he really wanted to overcome. He further said, due to the expensive admission and monthly fees, he could not avail the necessary amount, so he attended as a day care patient.

Over All Learning

1. Mental sickness is just like another sickness of our body parts, which can be very much cure, the patient needs the same treatments as that of the other sick patients.

2. Mentally ill patients should not be isolated and treated like the animals, they should be given due care and should be treated like a normal person in order not to make them more mentally ill.

3. There should be more government and non-governmental organisations working with communities to overcome stigma and abuse of the mentally sick people.