Counselling sessions for mentally-ill prisoners in Odisha soon

BHUBANESWAR: The state prisons directorate is planning to arrange for telepsychiatry sessions for jail inmates as many of them have developed mental illnesses owing to the uncertainty over the court trials of their cases and the temporary ban on physical meetings (mulaqat) with family members during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The move comes after the ministry of home affairs recently issued an advisory to states and emphasized on taking steps to address the mental illnesses of prisoners during the pandemic. The department of psychiatry of the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) in Bangalore was engaged by the Centre to prepare the advisory.
“We have sent the advisory to the jail superintendents and asked them to coordinate with the chief district medical officers to address the issue of the stress and anxiety of prisoners,” director general (prisons and correctional services) Santosh Upadhyay said.
It must be noted that the daily mulaqat system was temporarily discontinued when the second wave of Covid hit home, much to the disappointment of the prisoners. Though it was replaced with e-mulaqat, the facility is not available in all the jails owing to lack of infrastructure and connectivity problems.
“Court trials have been adversely affected during Covid. Though several undertrial prisoners were released on bail as part of the decongestion exercise, many others who were arrested for petty offences, have not been able to get bail. This has pushed them into depression,” another prison official said.
According to the advisory, video consultations should be used for screening, diagnosis, management and follow-up of new and old cases in prisons. It is possible to include brief interventions such as counselling and psychotherapy sessions through this virtual mode. Efforts should be made to connect prisoners with their family members at regular intervals through video- conference, according to the advisory.
Some supervised engagement for patients within the isolation facility may be arranged. This may be some simple task or games, yoga and group activities following the principles of physical distancing. Psychological support can be provided through the teleconsultation mode by psychiatrists or clinical psychologists as per availability and feasibility, the advisory said. Jails have also been asked to conduct awareness programmes on mental wellness, mental illness, suicide prevention, and substance use disorder on a regular basis.
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