Practice Of ECT In Psychiatry – At Crossroad Between Science & Society

ECT is an important type of biological treatment in psychiatry that remains highly efficacious in the treatment of various disorders like severe depression, treatment-resistant depression, mania, acute schizophrenia, and catatonia and is even considered safe for the treatment of severe depression and bipolar disorder in women with pregnancy if all precautions are taken. It can even be life-saving in certain conditions. Due to various reasons, ECT became a subject of scrutiny from judicial quarters and human rights activists. Violent convulsions induced in unmodified ECT were also responsible for the distorted depiction of ECT in mass media. WHO, in its publication, “Resource Book on Mental Health, Human Rights, and Legislation” (2005) mentions the controversy regarding its very usefulness. The book also states that there is no indication of ECT in minors and categorically recommends stoppage of the use of the unmodified ECT and ECT to minors through legislation. The Mental Healthcare Act, 2017 (MHCA, 2017) was enacted recently in which provisions regarding the ECT are largely based on the WHO recommendations, though the ECT to minors is not outrightly prohibited with restrictions that have been imposed on its use in minors. Regardless of the fact of negative depiction in the media as well as in society, the place of ECT in psychiatric practice cannot be denied. In this symposium, we shall discuss various aspects of ECT including its present status in our country. Subtopics and speakers are as follows. 1. Practice of ECT in Psychiatry: Clinical Facts and Changing Trends – Dr. Rajesh Kumar, Professor and HOD of Psychiatry, IGIMS, Patna. 2. ECT and Human Rights: Global Law/ Statutes and its Implications – Dr. Pankaj Kumar, Additional Professor of HOD, AIIMS, Patna. 3. Current Status of ECT in India – Post MHCA, 2017. – Dr. C.L. Narayan, Ex-Professor of Psychiatry, AN Magadh Medical College, GAYA, BIHAR.