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Behavioral Emergencies in India: Would Psychiatric Emergency Services Help?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 March 2011

Sahoo Saddichha  and
Pandey Vibha
Sahoo Saddichha*
Affiliation:
Resident in Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health & Neurosciences, Bangalore, India
Pandey Vibha
Affiliation:
Research Consultant, Division of Clinical Research, Emergency Management and Research Institute, Hyderabad, India
*
Correspondence: Sahoo Saddichha, BA, MBBS, DPM, MD Resident in PsychiatryNational Institute of Mental Health & NeurosciencesBangalore, India 560029. E-mail: saddichha@gmail.com
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Abstract

Introduction: Behavioral emergencies constitute an important component of emergencies worldwide. Yet, research on behavioral emergencies in India has been scarce. This article discusses the burden, types, and epidemiology of behavioral emergencies in India.

Methods: A computerized search of Medline, Psychinfo, and Cochrane from 1975 to 2009 was performed, and all articles were evaluated and collated. The results were summarized.

Results and Conclusions: There is an acute need for psychiatric emergency services in India. Suicides, acute psychoses, and substance-related problems form the major portion of behavioral emergencies, while current trends show a rise in disaster- and terrorism-related emergencies.

Keywords

behavioral emergencyemergency psychiatryemergency servicespsychosocial
Type
Comprehensive Review
Information
Prehospital and Disaster Medicine , Volume 26 , Issue 1 , February 2011 , pp. 65 - 70
Copyright
Copyright Saddichha © World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine 2011

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