IMA releases mental health guide for medical students
To become a doctor is a dream of many. But one can feel the real struggle when they jump to the environment of the medical college. It can take a toll on the mental health of the students.
Considering the back-to-back incidences of medical students’ suicides and violence against resident doctors, Indian Medical Association(IMA), in collaboration with White Swan Foundation has prepared an e-book ‘MBBS – A guide to well-being for medical students’. IMA has drafted the book under its Doctors4Doctors project.
For a first-year medical student, the college and related work environment are completely different. He/she might be easily vulnerable at that stage. Academic pressure, environment, and relationships with friends, seniors take a toll on the student’s mind.
The e-book covers all such aspects, from common struggles of MBBS students who come from other states, and cities, their mental well-being, the way to deal with stress, ragging, discrimination and bullying, and dealing with difficult people.
Suicides among doctors is a matter of serious concern for us, especially in recent years. A recent study of medical professionals shows that the rate of suicides is 30% more in doctors compared to other professions. So, IMA took the initiative in 2018 and started drafting this booklet,” said Dr Ravi Wankhedkar, former IMA national president.
“We included nationally renowned experts of all parameters, right from psychology to diet and yoga in this initiative. They have written articles in very lucid format and we have presented it engagingly,” he added.
What does the book offer?
The book offers help and understanding in a wide range of topics. The tips on the book include how to face bullying, discrimination and ragging, how to deal with grief, how to handle psychological issues, how to seek help etc. The book also provides the name of some books related to such topics for further reading.
The book is available free for download. IMA has already approached all health universities in the country to include this book in their syllabus. MUHS is considering it positively. “The syllabus for MBBS was revised after a gap of 21 years recently. In this new format, students will also get lessons on gender sensitivity, communication skills, lifestyle diseases, behavioural sciences and medical jurisprudence during their MBBS course only. The present booklet by IMA could be a good reference reading material for them,” said Dr K D Chavan, registrar of MUHS.
Source: Times Of India, The Free press Journal.