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Written By: IANS | Updated : September 12, 2013 10:35 AM IST
The health ministry must take cognisance of the pathetic state of mentally ill patients - including one chained to a tree - outside the premier All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here waiting for admission, a Rajya Sabha member said in the upper house of parliament on Friday.
'It is unfortunate that hundreds of patients from across the country wait outside AIIMS, languishing in a very bad condition. The health ministry should take cognisance of the issue,' Shiv Sena MP Anil Desai said.
'As per a media report, a mentally ill patient has been chained at the entrance of the hospital, as his relatives are not able to admit him in hospital,' Desai added.
This was brazen violation of the Mental Health Care Bill 2013 that makes access to mental healthcare a right for all, he maintained.
What is the Mental Health Care Bill 2013?
The Mental Health Care Bill 2013 was formed after changes to the Mental Health Care Bill 1987 so that people with mental health problems could get more rights. The new bill decriminalises suicide, gives people a chance to write an advanced directive which will decide how they re to be treated if they take mentally ill and will also force insurance companies will have to make provisions for treatment for mental conditions the same way they do for physical ones.
Some features of the new bill:
1. Decriminalises suicide
2. The ability to choose treatment options
3. Medical insurance to cover mental health treatment
4. Ensure equality and dignity for the mentally ill
5. Ban on archaic and barbaric treatment methods
(Read more: Will the Mental Healthcare Bill 2013 address the woes of the mentally ill?)
With inputs from IANS
