Background Rural Homoeopathic Hospital has been serving the community in and around Palghar for the past 20 years. Through a Central Government Scheme of Centre of Excellence, it received funds for setting up an inpatient psychiatric unit in 2012 whereby it could serve the wider community by admitting the patients with mental illness in a secure ward. This is the first part of two papers which deals with demographic analysis of the patients admitted in the psychiatry ward between 2014 and 2018. Objectives The case records were studied with a view to determine the demographic features, the clinical diagnosis and the duration of stay. Methodology All case records were studied as per a predetermined format to establish the demographic features, the clinical diagnosis and the duration of stay in the ward. Results Out of 1,015 patients seen, 35% were having alcohol withdrawal, 12.7% were having conversion, 9.8% were having suicidal attempt and 9.7% were suffering from anxiety. The duration of stay in the hospital was noticeably shorter than what has been reported from the allopathic admissions. Conclusion Alcoholism followed by conversion disorders, suicidal attempts and anxiety-panic conditions was the most common psychiatric condition with which patients were admitted. Males were predominating mainly due to their alcoholic condition. The duration of stay was reasonably short. The reasons for this would need further exploration.

Background Rural homoeopathic hospital has been serving the community in and around Palghar for the past 20 years. Through a Central Government Scheme of Centre of Excellence, it received funds for setting up an inpatient psychiatric unit in 2012 whereby it could serve the wider community by admitting the patients with mental illness in a secure ward. This is the second of two papers on the experience of homoeopathic treatment of psychiatric inpatients and details of the outcome of homoeopathic treatment to patients admitted between 2014 and 2018. Objective Efforts have been made to explore the outcomes of homoeopathic intervention, singly or as adjuvant treatment, for a variety of clinical conditions and to determine the commonly indicated remedies that were found useful. Methodology A standard operating procedure enabled symptom analysis and evaluation; it also enabled to erect the homoeopathic totality and institute treatment along with conducting the follow-up. Retrospective analysis using Outcome Related to Impact on Daily Living scale helped to establish the results of homoeopathic intervention. Results An excellent response to homoeopathic intervention was obtained for several clinical conditions like alcohol withdrawal (76.3%), conversion disorder (82.17%), suicide attempt (85.13%), anxiety disorders (84.19%), depressive disorders (75%) and somatoform (85.17%). The rate of improvement in schizophrenia (60%) and epilepsy (22.6%) was lower. The commonly indicated homoeopathic remedies for each clinical condition were identified. This information would help practitioners to acquire knowledge of a pool of remedies from which they could readily determine the similimum. Conclusion Homoeopathic treatment, either alone or as an adjuvant, is useful in the management of psychiatric inpatients for several clinical conditions. Remedies found useful in different clinical conditions need to be studied in greater depth to identify their leading indications.

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Objective: COVID-19 pandemic has affected the provision of psychiatric care across the world and the elderly have been the most disadvantaged. Psychological stress in them is not only due to excess mortality risk but also due to restrictions instituted to mitigate the chances of contracting COVID. The current pandemic is likely to lead to substantial changes in the health-care services as it has shown the need for improved multidisciplinary and community- centered care. The purpose of this paper is to address the challenges faced while implementing a multidisciplinary structured programme for the mental well-being in residents of old age home and assess the role played by the sustainable multidisciplinary structured interventions to alleviate the psychological suffering. The old age home in the study is situated in a remote area of Palghar district. Availing of required medical health-care facility during a pandemic was a challenge in itself, where delivering the multidisciplinary intervention for mental well-being was a much needed and never tested in such a setup. Material and Methods: Primary screening and knowledge of acute and chronic stressors revealed the current status of emotional wounds and hence the emotional sensitivity of the group. Scales (generalised anxiety disorder [GAD-7], patient health questionnaires [PHQ-2] and dementia assessment by rapid test [DART]) were employed to evaluate intensity of anxiety, depressive symptoms and dementia. Techniques to deal with distress demonstrated in each session were based on action learning principles. Structured group interventions were done through relevant videos, group discussions, relaxation techniques, meditation and physical exercise by the team of homoeopathic physicians, psychologist and physiotherapist. Results were subjected to statistical analysis. Results: There was a statistically significant reduction in anxiety following intervention, z = −3.886, P < 0.001, with a large effect size (r =.57). The median score on the anxiety decreased from 10 to 4 in a span of 10 months. No significant improvement was found in physical health and cognitive impairment.

Objectives: During the on-going COVID-19 pandemic, the risk to the mental well-being of the elderly living in an old age home (OAH) has increased considerably. Dealing with this issue requires special measures. The current literature has very few examples of such programmes. We aimed to promote emotional balance and an independent living with positive outlook on life among the residents of the OAH facility during the pandemic based on action learning principles. This programme was conducted in an OAH that our institute has been associated with for several years. HelpAge India, a non-governmental organisation working in India to assist disadvantaged senior citizens, provided a programme that covered 12 themes. This article deals with the structuring process of the programme. Materials and Methods: The team comprised homoeopathic consultants and the faculty and students of a postgraduate homoeopathic institute. An extensive literature search and consultation with experts from various fields enabled the team to plan and build the final programme were evolved. Results: Broad themes gave rise to distinct modules and objectives were derived for each of these. Detailed action plans were worked out and a plan of evaluation for each of these modules was worked out. Conclusion: Planning a programme to ensure well-being needs a close and accurate identification of the needs of the residents of a particular OAH. A multidisciplinary approach can help in evolving effective strategies to formulate models for geriatric mental well-being.