Department of Psychiatry

1.  Faculty members and their research interest:

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2.  No. of Post-graduate admission per year:

      M.D. - 1      

3.  Highlights of patient care provided :

In addition to the regular OPDs on forenoon of all working days the following special clinics are also conducted:

Marital and Psychosexual clinic          -           Monday

Affective Disorder Clinic                   -           Tuesday

Crisis Intervention Clinic                    -           Thursday

Schizophrenia Follow-up Clinic          -          Friday

Neuropsychiatry and Memory Clinic -           Saturday

The child guidance clinic held on Wednesday and Thursday (afternoon) in collaboration with the Department of Pediatrics focuses on emotional and behavioral problems of children and adolescents.  Psychiatric services are made available for urban population by integrating them with the general health care provided by the Urban Health Centre at Kuruchikuppam. 

The centre practices multi disciplinary approach in evaluation and management of psychiatric illnesses. The clinical psychologists and psychiatric social workers form part of the multidisciplinary team. Equal importance is given to both pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions. Behaviour therapy, cognitive therapy, family therapy, bio-feed back techniques and counseling are offered as part of total management. Families with children suffering from chronic illnesses and families with an AIDS affected member are specially targeted for family therapy intervention.  Psychiatry emergency services and Crisis intervention is available round the clock for emergencies like suicidal attempts, etc.

The department has been designated as a Regional De-addiction Centre in 1991 by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.  This centre has  inpatient facilities for the management of substance abuse disorders. Drug De-addiction Clinic is conducted on every Saturday (forenoon) which offers comprehensive psychosocial assessment and management of substance abuse disorders.  The services for Tobacco cessation facility are also available in this clinic.  It offers extension services in rural areas through mobile clinics, orientation training programme for general duty medical officers and anganwadi workers.  An elaborate database is maintained to facilitate research in this area.

4.   Special equipment available:

Brief Pulse Electro Convulsive Therapy machine, Biofeedback equipment, Lithium Analyzer.

5.  Major research activities:

U.G.C. funded project : “A two-year prospective follow-up study of suicide attempts with a special focus on re-attempts”.

W.H.O. funded project on “Epidemiology of Mental Disorders – A Longitudinal Study”.

A follow-up study of alcoholic halucinosis in a tertiary care hospital.

Predictors of aggression in inpatient psychiatric population.

Determinants of depression in drug native schizophrenia.  

Major Research Activities ongoing:

·         Coping strategies in suicidal patients

·         Randomized controlled trial of magnesium valproate versus sodium valproate in treatment of mania

·         Study of disruptive behavior disorders in children presenting to Child Guidance Clinic

·         Study of suicidality induced by fluoxetine in patients with depression presenting to the Psychiatry Outpatient department

·         Inter-departmental study with Departments of Physiology and Biochemistry on efficacy and biological correlates of yoga therapy in depression

·         Inter-departmental study with Department of Anatomy on relationship between stress and DNA damage in health professionals.

6.  Other notable contribution to health sciences:

The de-addiction centre has standardized rating instruments for use in local population. The centre offers alcohol education and relapse prevention programmes on a regular basis. Spouses of alcoholics are targeted for training in the use of effective coping skills.