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
More of Today's Solutions
Gamers revolutionize biomedical research via DNA analysis
In a remarkable study published in Nature Biotechnology, researchers discovered gaming's transformative potential in biomedical research. Borderlands Science, an interactive mini-game included in Borderlands ...
Read MoreThe ancient origins of your 600,000 year old cuppa joe
Did you realize that the beans that comprise your morning cup of coffee date back 600,000 years? Scientists have discovered the ancient origins of Coffea arabica, ...
Read MoreWorld record broken for coldest temperature ever recorded
With our current knowledge of how temperature works there is no upper limit, this means materials can keep getting hotter and hotter to no ...
Read MoreA youth-led environmental victory creates a paradigm shift in Montana’s...
A group of youth environmental activists scored a landmark legal victory in Montana, marking a critical step forward in the ongoing battle against climate ...
Read More
