India has among the highest rates of depression in the world and only one psychiatrist for more than 300,000 people on average. Rural areas fare the worst, with a higher rate of suicides among farmers than the rest of the population. A program launched by the government’s National Rural Health Mission aims to address the situation using smartphones to connect local Accredited Social Health Activists (recruited among women) with medical professionals in distant offices. Although only 40 villages currently benefit, the good news is that mental health is now on the government’s radar. Of course, in an ideal world, we would love to see India’s public policies tackle the root causes of farmers’ suicides as well as the symptoms.
Smartphones help alleviate depression in rural India
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