Dr Swapnil Lale - Add Director ( Mental Health ) _ Maha Govt

Dear Dr. Swapnil Laleji,

At the outset , Congratulations for the huge service being offered by Maharashtra State Mental Health Authority (MSMHA)

In today’s Times of India, I came across following news report :

“ Over 14 lakh people went in for COUNSELLING in Maharashtra in last 3 yrs “

Following is how BARD summarized that report :

Yes, I have come across the news item from Times News Network titled "Over 14 lakh people went in for counselling in Maharashtra in last 3 yrs".

Here is a summary of the news item:

Over 14 lakh people went in for counselling in Maharashtra in the last 3 years, with the maximum number of people seeking help for mental health issues, followed by career-related issues and relationship problems.

The data was released by the Maharashtra State Mental Health Authority (MSMHA) on the occasion of World Mental Health Day. The data also showed that the number of people seeking counselling has increased steadily over the past 3 years.

The MSMHA has attributed the increase in the number of people seeking counselling to a number of factors, including:

Increased awareness of mental health issues

Reduced stigma surrounding mental illness

Increased availability of counselling services

The COVID-19 pandemic, which has had a significant impact on mental health

The MSMHA has also said that it is committed to providing accessible and affordable counselling services to all those who need them. The authority has a network of over 1,000 counselling centres across the state, and it also offers online counselling services.

The news item is a positive development, as it shows that more and more people in Maharashtra are seeking help for mental health issues. It is also a reminder that mental health is just as important as physical health, and that there is no shame in seeking help if you are struggling.

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?At one place, you are quoted as :

State additional director ( mental health ), Dr Swapnil Lale said that not all people with mental ailments need hospitalization or even medication

“ Only about 1 % of those with mental ailments would need medication and most would get better with counseling alone “, he said

He said the State has evolved a three-tier system to diagnose mental health ailments.

“ We have a tele-counselling service where people can call up , or doctors manning our health centres who have been trained to detect mental well-being can recommend people to seek help “ , he said

Those suspected of having mental problems are then referred to the nearest district hospital for a diagnosis and further action such as medication and counseling

Dear Dr Lale ,

In India , we have over 90 MILLION persons in need of Mental Health-care , but only ONE psycho-therapist for every 10,000 patients !

We need to seek help from Artificial Intelligence ( AI ), to COUNSEL those 99 % for whom , counseling will suffice . Only then we can cater to 90 million persons

I urge you to take initiative to launch such a AI-powered COUNSELLING PORTAL , where a MILLION persons can login , AT A TIME , and get AI Chatbot to listen to their problems and provide answers – all of million , SIMULTANEOUSLY? !

You will find a FRAME-WORK for such a portal at >

Share - Your - Soul / Outsourcing Unlimited…………………nbsp;24 July 2016

With regards,

Hemen Parekh

www.hemenparekh.ai ? /? 10 Oct 2023

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Indian Govts Mental Health Helpline Tele MANAS Now Available 24x7

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Tele MANAS, a centralised mental health helpline, receives over 18,000 calls from Maharashtra; around 30% of them from Kolhapur, Pune, Sangli, Aurangabad and Mumbai

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1st Jamp;K Tele Manas Chat Bot of Indianbsp;nbsp;nbsp;

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There have been 212 conversations till now. Anxiety related issues, depression, substance abuse and relationship issues predominate the reasons for using the CHATBOT

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Tele-MANAS: 3.4 lakh calls received since launch nbsp;

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According to official data, the government's national mental health helpline Tele-MANAS has received 3.4 lakh calls since its launch in October last year, with three out of every four callers being between the ages of 18 and 45.

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ADDITIONAL? VIEWS? OF? BARD :

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Here are some substantive arguments in favour of launching an AI-powered chatbot that can handle thousands of conversations with mental health patients simultaneously:

Increased access to care:?

AI-powered chatbots can provide mental health support to people who live in remote areas or who do not have access to traditional mental health services.

Reduced stigma:?

People may be more likely to seek help from an AI chatbot than from a human therapist, especially if they are concerned about stigma.

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24/7 availability:?

AI chatbots can provide mental health support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This is important because mental health crises can happen at any time.

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Scalability:?

AI chatbots can scale to meet the needs of a large population. This is important in countries like India, where there is a shortage of mental health professionals.

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I am not sure how many simultaneous chats STELLA can handle, but other AI-powered chatbots, such as Wysa and Woebot, can handle hundreds of simultaneous chats.

Here is an example of how an AI-powered chatbot could be used to provide mental health support:

A person who is feeling anxious could start a conversation with the chatbot by saying something like, "I'm feeling really anxious right now." The chatbot could then

ask the person some questions about their anxiety, such as what is triggering it and how it is making them feel. The chatbot could then provide the person with

coping mechanisms and support strategies.

If the person's anxiety is severe, the chatbot could refer them to a human therapist. However, many people can be helped by AI-powered chatbots alone.

I believe that AI-powered chatbots have the potential to revolutionize mental health care.

They can provide access to care to people who would otherwise not have it, and they can reduce the stigma associated with mental illness.

I hope that more governments and organizations will launch AI-powered chatbots to provide mental health support to people in need.