Training and engaging in-patients in various jobs for their rehabilitation and community integration is an ongoing effort at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH). Now, 28 patients have been trained and engaged in housekeeping and security services on the campus.
Bakery, art and crafts, tailoring and gardening are among the various industrial therapy centres that IMH runs for patients on its campus. Last year, a few of the patients, who improved after treatment, secured jobs in government offices and food outlets. Now, Krystal, the agency to which housekeeping and security services in medical institutions under the Directorate of Medical Education are outsourced, has trained 28 patients of the IMH in housekeeping and security services.
“Of them, three patients are engaged in security work on the IMH campus. They are posted at wards and make inquiries when visitors arrive. One patient is in the telephone section and answers phone calls. The remaining persons are in housekeeping. They help with cleaning at the hospital,” P. Poorna Chandrika, IMH Director, said.
She added that the Disability Rights Alliance helped the hospital in completing paperwork with the Commissionerate for the Welfare of the Differently Abled.
These patients were being paid by the agency, and some of them visited banks to withdraw salary and purchased things that they required. IMH was also working with Ektha, a disability rights organisation, to help those with intellectual disabilities manage their finances, she said.
“Being engaged in jobs helps improve the confidence and self-esteem of patients. They can be a part of the community and it makes them feel good,” she said.
Dr. Chandrika added that they were also looking for accommodation for patients who had landed jobs earlier. “The half-way home at the outpatient department premises is nearing completion. It can accommodate 50 persons. They can stay here and be independent with monitoring. This will help them become self-sufficient,” she said.
