Role of nongovernmental organizations in community mental health

Abstract

This article focuses on the work done by nongovernmental Organizations (NGOs) in mental health (MH) in India and will illustrate in broad strokes the growth of NGOs in the MH sector. It describes the evolution of MH services over the years with specific emphasis on community MH activities undertaken by NGOs. The role of the MH NGO in bridging the MH gap and the activities that have been undertaken ranging from primary prevention work to tertiary care is discussed. The inherent strengths that the NGOs have in working with communities and their ability to provide holistic care and services beyond the medical model by involving a wide array of workers ranging from MH professionals to peer support providers is examined. The need for private–public partnership in MH is emphasized as the way forward along with leveraging digital technologies that has now come into sharp focus following the COVID pandemic.

Keywords

• community-based interventions
• community mental health
• india
• mental health nongovernmental organization
• nongovernmental organization activities
• nongovernmental organization