Mental Health Rehabilitation in the Kyrgyz Republic: Official and Indigenous Models

Abstract

The collapse of the Soviet Union has led to termination of the previous governmental mental health rehabilitation system. The article describes the status of the public rehabilitation system in the post-perestroika period, and an indigenous model of ‘family rehabilitation’ of patients with mental disorders. The family rehabilitation is predisposed by the traditional Kyrgyz family structure and cultural attitudes towards people with unusual behaviors. Nowadays there are several trends of psychosocial rehabilitation in the Kyrgyz Republic. One of the most perspective one integrates both communities and mental health specialists aimed at maintaining the quality of life of patients with mental disorders.