National mental health policy – 1996, what has been achieved: a review

Abstract

Neuropsychiatry conditions account for a significant proportion of the global burden of disease. Significant numbers of people of developing economies of the world often tend to be deprived of quality mental health services and even if they receive them and they tend not be evidence based. In such condition policies on mental health act as guides to render quality mental health services at affordable price to the needy population. The paper presents a review the mental health policy of Nepal-1996 on the basis of the basic objectives outlined by the policy and also tries to analyze whether those objectives have been attained as of date. The focus on four major aspect of the policy document i.e. access and availability to basic mental health services, development of required manpower, protection of fundamental human rights of mentally ill, improve awareness about mental health, mental disorders, and the promotion of mentally healthy life styles. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/jpan.v2i1.8567 J Psychiatrists’ Association of Nepal Vol .2, No.1, 2013 2-6