The Kerala High Court has welcomed the State government’s decision to rename mental health centres as ‘Happiness and Wellness Centres’, observing that the stigma associated with patients, their families and the centres themselves cannot be ignored.
A Division Bench comprising Justice Devan Ramachandran and Justice Basant Balaji made the observations after recently visiting mental health centres in Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur and Kozhikode.
The court noted that even the areas where these centres are located are often referred to in derogatory terms. The Bench expressed hope that the change in name would help bring about the broader social change needed in the way mental health and patients are perceived.
The judges also stressed that continued violations of the human rights of patients would bring shame to a civilised society and nation.
Meanwhile, the Advocate General informed the court that the government was seriously looking into issues related to infrastructure and staff vacancies at the centres. He said the government was committed to improving the facilities and ensuring that the centres provide patients with dignified and humane treatment.
Despite resource constraints, the government would leave no stone unturned to make the centres worthy of human care and treatment at the earliest, the Advocate General told the court.
