The Department of Psychiatry

Overview:

The Department of Psychiatry has been functioning in JIPMER since 1961. Dr N.C Surya was its first Head and it was under his visionary leadership that the foundation for the growth of the Department was laid. Subsequently the Department evolved and expanded under the able leadership of Dr Shuba Trivedi, Dr P.S Gopinath and Dr R. Chandrasekaran. The Postgraduate Residency (MD) programme was started in 1990 and the current intake of postgraduate residents is four per year. The department runs several specialised services for Deaddiction services which also include early intervention services for youth with alcohol and illicit drug use (ADAPT Clinic), Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Peripartum Psychiatry Services, Consultation-Liaison Services, Psychosomatic disorders clinic, Marital & Psychosexual disorders as well as Crisis intervention for suicidal patients. Recently, it has also started a 1-year post-doctoral fellowship program in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. The Department is actively involved in multidisciplinary clinical care and training, as well as research both at the intra-departmental level and in liaison with other disciplines. The services of clinical psychologist, psychiatric social worker, and occupational therapist are utilized to provide comprehensive and multimodal care enhancing treatment outcomes and patient satisfaction.

Clinical services:

Services are mainly divided into outpatient, inpatient, and community outreach services. The outpatient services are housed in the ground floor of the OPD block no 74 (new no 1014). The outpatient department sees a daily footfall of 50-100 patients on non-follow-up days (Mon/Wed/Thu) with the numbers rising to 300 per day on follow-up clinic days (Tue/Fri/Sat).

Quality inpatient services are provided in the 30-bedded inpatient unit located in ward-18 (new no 1081) of the ground floor of the hospital block. Dedicated beds are available for deaddiction services in keeping with the institute’s status as a nodal centre for deaddiction care. Weekly bedside grand rounds are conducted where faculty, residents and support staff participate in discussing and deciding the ongoing management of admitted patients.

The Department provides round the clock consultation-liaison psychiatry (CLP) services to address psychiatric issues in patients who are medically ill and provide prompt opinions on departmental cross-referrals. A 3-tier model consisting of junior resident, senior resident and consultant on call is followed to handle these services on a rotational basis. Separate rounds are held to discuss CLP cases seen in the week and plan appropriate management.

The Department also caters to the needs of special populations through a range of specialty clinics and inter-departmental collaborations. Details regarding these services are available on the "Out-Patient Services" page.

The Department also runs a regular community outreach program for the benefit of patients who are unable to access the hospital. Fortnightly clinics are held in the rural and urban health centres where registered patients are assessed, treated, and referred, as appropriate. Further, the department regularly participates in community health camps and community awareness initiatives, often in liaison with the department of community medicine, with the goal of promoting mental health awareness.

Faculty and Staff:

The Department is currently served by four Professors, one Additional Professor, three Assistant Professors , two full time clinical psychologist-cum-tutors, one psychiatric social worker-cum-tutor, and an occupational therapist. Office staff include an office secretary and a multi-tasking staff.

Academics:

Undergraduate and postgraduate students of various disciplines are trained, and conduct research, under the guidance of the Department. These include students from the following courses: M.B.B.S, B. Sc (Nursing), M.Sc (Nursing), B. Sc (Medical Records Technology) and the Diploma course for Emergency Medical Technicians.

The Department offers the M.D. (Psychiatry) course to four residents each year. Admission to this course is through the INI-CET entrance examination conducted twice a year. Learning is mainly self-directed and facilitated by the conduct of weekly seminars, journal clubs and clinical case conferences.

Students from other institutes, including Pondicherry University, also attend the Department for short- or long-term training. Students interested in the same can route their applications to the Dean, JIPMER, through the heads of their respective institutions.

Equipment available in the department:

• Brief Pulse Electro-Convulsive Therapy (ECT) Machine
• Electrocardiogram
• Transcranial Magnetic Stimulator
• Electro-Encephalography Apparatus with Video Facilities
• EMG Biofeedback Apparatus

Last Updated:01-Nov-2024