On the eve of World Health Day the Bokaro chapter of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) has organised a workshop on ‘Depression’ at Bokaro General Hospital (BGH) on Friday.
Speaking on the occasion experts said, World Health Day, celebrated on 7 April every year to mark the anniversary of the founding of the World Health Organisation, provides us with a unique opportunity to mobilize action around a specific health topic of concern to people all over the world. The theme of 2017 World Health Day campaign is depression, said Dr RK Nirala Secretary of IMA Bokaro.
“Depression affects people of all ages, from all walks of life, in all countries. It causes mental anguish and impacts on people’s ability to carry out even the simplest everyday tasks, with sometimes devastating consequences for relationships with family and friends and the ability to earn a living”, said expert. “At worst, depression can lead to suicide, now the second leading cause of death among 15-29 year olds”, he added.
Everyone has felt sad at one time or another, usually it is due to a disappointment, frustration or losing someone. Such sadness is normal; time heals, the mood lifts and people continue to get on with their lives, said another expert. “But in some people, depression can be so severe that it dominates their lives, preventing them from coping as they are used to. Depression of this degree is an illness and needs treatment”, he added.
Now-a-days depression afflicts a large section of the people is considered an alien subject. Depression has been called the “common cold of mental health problem”.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) recently ranked depression as the leading cause of morbidity in developing nations in the next century, said the expert. “lifetime occurrence rate is between 3 to 6 percent and it is twice as common in women as it is in men”, he added.
It commonly begins in people aged between 20 and 40 years, although it can occur in children or older people. Research has shown that it is commoner in people with a family history of depression, he said. Beside others Dr NK Sahoo DMH BGH, Dr Rita Hansda, Dr RN Pradhan, Dr Kumar Rajdeep, Dr. RK Mishra, Dr. PK Sarkar, Dr. ND KAchhap, Dr, Satish Kumar, Dr. Prabhat Kumar were present during the workshop.