To,

Mr.  Oma Nand

Director Ministry of Health and Family welfare,

Nirman Bhawan, New Dehi-110108

Email – oma.nand@nic.in

Dear Sir,

This is in context to the Draft of Rules and Regulation framed under the Mental Health Care Act,2017.  I a practicing psychiatrist for last twenty five years want to put my objection in regard to schedule SR A

(page 70) which refers section 123.2 and 18.9 . 

My objection is to clause 2 under head , "Minimal quality standard of mental health services made available by Government".

The said clause is reproduced below,

Such Establishment which are not Mental Health "Establishment but which run OPDs shall follow the minimum standard laid down for OPDs run by Mental Health Establishment and such standards shall be deemed as minimum quality standards for such non Mental Health Establishments". 

The Mental Health Care Act ,2017 in Chapter( I) Section 2. Clause I sub clause( o) defines Mental Health Establishment without any ambiguity, as below

“mental health establishment”means any health establishment, including Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy establishment, by whatever name called, either wholly or partly, meant for the care of persons with mental illness, established, owned, controlled or maintained by the appropriate Government, local authority, trust, whether private or public, corporation, co-operative society, organisation or any other entity or person, where persons with mental illness are admitted and reside at, or kept in, for care, treatment, convalescence and rehabilitation, either temporarily or otherwise; and includes any general hospital or general nursing home established or maintained by the appropriate Government, local authority, trust,whether private or public, corporation, co-operative society, organisation or any other entity or person; but does not include a family residential place where a person with mental illness resides with his relatives or friends.

The definition is so precise that any facility where person with mental illness are admitted, resides at, or kept in , for care , treatment , convalescence , and rehabilitation do come under this Act.  Any other facility like Outdoor Patient facility as mentioned in Draft of Rules and Regulation Mental Health Care Act as described schedule SR A(page 70)  as not mental health establishment and non mental health establishment. Since non mental health establishment (OPDs) do not come under the preview of Act no minimum quality standards can be be fixed under this act. The facilities which are not in preview of act no rules regulation framed can beyond the Act itself. 

  The section 18.9 under which the rule is made is in ,CHAPTER V under heading ,RIGHTS OF PERSONS WITH MENTAL ILLNESS . The clause and sub clauses are applicable to Government Mental Health Establishment only      . Section 18.1, 18.9 are given below.

18. (1)" Every person shall have a right to access mental health care and treatment from mental health services run or funded by the appropriate Government".

(9) The minimum quality standards of mental health services shall be as specified by
regulations made by the State Authority

The single OPD which are not part Mental Health Establishment in Private Mental Health Care or Government Hospital are non Mental Health Establishment or Not Mental Health Establishment  as per Mental Health Care Act  so I strongly object about the ambiguous and unclear rule again reproduced it below. I appeal the clause 2 page 70 of rules regulation be removed . Any non Mental Health Establishment like OPD cannot be registered the Act and this will be in contravention to the Act .

SR A(page 70) clause is “ Such Establishment which are not Mental Health Establishment but which run OPDs shall follow the minimum standard laid down for OPDs run by Mental Health Establishment and such standards shall be deemed as minimum quality standards for such non Mental Health Establishments”

I hope my objection will be taken into consideration and appropriate action will be taken.