Nepal is a diverse nation with rich cultural and social traditions. It has faced unique challenges in mental health due to factors like poverty, natural disasters, political instability, and deep-rooted stigma throughout the history. Though mental health services in Nepal have been limited and largely centered in urban areas in the past, there has been an upliftment of services in the last decade. Efforts have been made to decentralize mental health services and integrate them into primary healthcare and community settings. The disasters at regular intervals and the COVID-19 pandemic exposed vulnerabilities in Nepal’s mental health system. Traditional faith healing practices continue to coexist with modern psychiatric care, necessitating collaboration between mental health professionals and local healers to ensure proper pathways of care. There is a need for policy reform, capacity building, and research to generate evidence-based interventions to suit the social context of Nepal. In this chapter, we discuss the social aspects of psychiatric disorders and their management in the Nepalese context.

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Social Psychiatry in Nepal

  • Pawan Sharma,
  • Anoop Krishna Gupta,
  • Kamal Gautam

摘要

Nepal is a diverse nation with rich cultural and social traditions. It has faced unique challenges in mental health due to factors like poverty, natural disasters, political instability, and deep-rooted stigma throughout the history. Though mental health services in Nepal have been limited and largely centered in urban areas in the past, there has been an upliftment of services in the last decade. Efforts have been made to decentralize mental health services and integrate them into primary healthcare and community settings. The disasters at regular intervals and the COVID-19 pandemic exposed vulnerabilities in Nepal’s mental health system. Traditional faith healing practices continue to coexist with modern psychiatric care, necessitating collaboration between mental health professionals and local healers to ensure proper pathways of care. There is a need for policy reform, capacity building, and research to generate evidence-based interventions to suit the social context of Nepal. In this chapter, we discuss the social aspects of psychiatric disorders and their management in the Nepalese context.