Emergencies in Psychiatry in Low- and Middle-income Countries, Second Edition

Features

• Describes the presentation and management of psychiatric disorders in the emergency setting including special population groups such as women, children and the elderly, who require different modes of intervention.
• Addresses emergencies following psychosocial and environmental events. This has special significance considering the rising rate of suicide and increase in the frequency of disasters in developing countries.
• Chapters on suicidal and uncooperative patients dwell on particularly challenging clinical situations, emphasizing ethical issues and the need to ensure the safety of the patient.
• Discussion of the medicolegal aspects of a psychiatric emergency in developing countries is of relevance since many countries still follow outdated and archaic legal procedures.
• As patients often present to the emergency department both with psychiatric as well as physical symptoms, the book covers psychiatric emergencies associated with medical disorders, sexual disorders and drug-related issues.

Summary

There is a need to not only understand psychiatric emergencies in low- and middle-income countries but also to formulate logical and acceptable forms of intervention. This book gives the reader an overview of the kinds of psychiatric emergencies that can occur and the strategies employed to manage these in developing countries. The book covers anxiety disorders, psychotic disorders, personality disorders, substance abuse disorders, grief, suicidal behaviour and psychiatric emergencies following disasters. It also deals with special population groups, such as women, children and the elderly, who require different modes of intervention.

Table of Contents

Foreword. Preface. Contributors. Abbreviations. Anxious Patient in the Emergency Ward. Psychiatric Emergencies in Substance Abuse. Psychotic Disorders including Schizophrenia. Psychiatric Emergencies in Grief. Emergency Treatment of the Acutely Disturbed and Aggressive Patient. Psychiatric Emergencies Associated with Drug. Psychiatric Emergencies in Women. Emergency Management of Suicidal Behavior. Psychiatric Emergencies in Disaster Situations. Child Psychiatric Emergencies. Sexual Emergencies: A Psychiatrist’s Perspective. Psychiatric Emergencies in Medical Conditions. Psychiatric Emergencies in Personality Disorders. Legal Aspects of Psychiatric Emergencies. Psychiatric Emergencies in the Elderly. Annexure: Suggested Dosages. Index.

Editor(s) Bio

LAKSHMI VIJAYAKUMAR is Founder Trustee, SNEHA, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Sneha has been working in the field of suicide intervention for the past 25 years. Sneha extends emotional support to the depressed, desperate and suicidal when they feel there is no one to turn to. They need someone with whom they can share their pain and misery in confidence; someone who would listen, understand and accept them unconditionally.

R. THARA is Director, Schizophrenia Research Foundation (SCARF), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. SCARF is one of the very few NGOs in the world to be named as a Collaborating Centre of the World Health Organization (WHO) for Mental Health Research and Training. SCARF is also the Indian co-ordinating site for the anti-stigma programme of the World Psychiatric Association.