Manas Foundation

Manas is a mental health organization, working with the goal of providing mental health services to all sections of the society. We work towards enhancing the supply of mental health services while also working towards generating demand for the same. Our awareness campaigns, active advocacy and lobbying with various stakeholders works towards generating demand for mental health services, and also helps in reducing the shame and stigma attached towards accessing mental health services. Direct delivery of services, training programmes for professionals in the field of psychology, paraprofessionals and barefoot counsellors help in providing effective services to various sections. , Our plugin model of mental health believes in incorporating mental health services into any existing model of delivery that is serving a section of society. Through this model we use existing delivery systems to reach out to vulnerable sections of the society cost effectively and efficiently. People living with HIV/AIDS, MSM groups, slum populations, women covered under RCH programme, students in schools and colleges and disadvantaged youth serviced by various CSOs are some of the groups that have been targeted through this approach. , In the area of gender, we specially work with target populations that consistently come in contact with women, like commercial vehicle drivers, police and health workers and sensitise them to make women comfortable in accessing these services, while in the long run working towards gender equity and reducing violence. , Lastly, youth and adolescents, both mainstream and disadvantaged, form a special focus of our work. We work towards ensuring that preventive measures are taken to reduce the occurrence of psychological disorders among the target population. This work also involves early identification and redressal in situation where psychological problems have developed. Mental health sensitization of concerned stakeholders as well as skill enhancement for identification and first aid redressal work towards sustainability of our endeavours.