The 10th of October is dedicated to World Mental Health. According to an update from the WHO World Mental Health Surveys, by 2020 depression and anxiety are predicted to be the leading illnesses in the world. In March 2015, India’s apex mental health institute, National Institute of Mental Health Sciences (NIMHANS) estimated that the number of Indians experiencing one or another form of mental illness exceeded 200 million, which is more than the total population of Pakistan. Despite being one of the largest growing economies, India spends less than 1 percent of its GDP on its health sector of which mental health accounts for 0.83 percent of the total health budget, which is abysmally low. WHO reports that, despite these alarming figures and having one of the highest suicide rates in the world, India has 3,500 psychiatrists, only one for every 343,000 people.
In keeping with the theme of Dignity in Mental Health and an effort to bring mental health into the open and weaken the stigma, Lexicon- a Indian borne international medical magazine brought together a network of health care professionals spread among 52 hospitals across the country for their latest edition- ‘Madness’ aimed at dissolving stigma and bringing awareness regarding mental health issues. This edition includes exclusives about Deepika Padukone’s foundation for Depression- ‘Live Love Laugh’, Reshma Valliappan’s ‘The Red Door’ and interview of several professors including Dr Vikram Patel of TIME’S 100 most influential people. The edition is set to be released on October 10 and can be freely accessed at www.lexiconin.com
