IDFC FIRST Bank and Banyan Academy of Leadership in Mental Health launch Center for Trauma Studies and Innovation

ANI |
Update: October 16, 2021 2:04 PM STI

New Delhi [India], Oct. 16 (ANI / NewsView): IDFC FIRST Bank today announced the launch of the first Center for Trauma Studies and Innovation (CTSI), in association with Banyan Academy of Leadership in Mental Health (BALM).
The initiative, which was launched on World Mental Health Day, aims to address the need to look at mental health from a trauma perspective, in addition to raising awareness of mental well-being. Through this initiative, the Center for Trauma will create curricula and facilitate trauma-related courses for health professionals at the urban and local levels.
Although injuries are a significant public health problem, leading to health and mortality issues, there is a dearth of units designated to deal with related problems. Existing trauma care systems are not only basic, but are also largely limited to selected urban and semi-urban areas, without integration with regional or state-wide systems.
Rural and remote areas of the hinterland lack facilities for rapid treatment and safe transfer of affected people to better equipped facilities. The The Center for Trauma Studies and Innovation is created to fill this critical gap, promote credible courses that study key areas of trauma care, and provide effective, accessible and affordable health services for all.
The The Center for Trauma Studies and Innovation will be open to health professionals from various fields. Emphasis is placed on capacity building at the local level. IDFC FIRST Bank and BALM have raised awareness about mental health through social media campaigns, newsletters and published articles.
Rachana Iyer, Head – Corporate Social Responsibility, IDFC FIRST Bank, said: “The gap in access to mental health care is more pronounced than ever as people from all walks of life experience trauma from illness, isolation, loss of a loved one, job loss and other incidents triggered by the pandemic.
Trauma care systems in India are at an early stage and constrained by lack of financial support and infrastructure. At IDFC FIRST Bank, our mission is to fill these gaps so that underserved and excluded people have better access to mental health care. The launch of the Center for Trauma strengthens our efforts in raising awareness of the element of trauma care in mental health. “

IDFC FIRST Bank and BALM have been partners since 2016 and have strongly supported the capacity building of human resources in mental health through their scholarship program. Another unique initiative provided by this partnership is the GoTN Bereavement and Mourning Helpline Program in partnership with the National Health Mission of the Government of Tamil Nadu.
The helpline, launched in May 2021, has already included 80 volunteers who have made more than 5,000 calls. The helplines successfully reached nearly 6,000 affected family members, provided ongoing counseling to 486 people and conducted 38 debriefing sessions with volunteers across the country.
Madhuri Menon, Dean of BALM, said: “At BALM, our approach is rooted in evidence-based research and techniques, and our goal is to build an empathetic and resilient society. Trauma is not necessarily a big event, but small, continuous events, being subjected to or witnessing regularly – for example domestic violence – can have major adverse effects on mental health. Therefore, we believe that mental health services can really be improved through trauma-informed care, which makes practitioners more empathetic and attentive to clients from vulnerable groups or people with chronic trauma. Based on our strong partnership with IDFC FIRST Bank, we aim to create a number of initiatives to address this issue holistically. Additionally, we are on a mission to educate a wider audience about trauma care by providing informed courses and knowledge materials that aid in a better understanding of the problem. Finally, we hope that the initiatives we have taken in the mental health space will contribute to advocacy and policy, making mental health services more inclusive and equitable for all. “
As part of an effort to raise awareness of the cause, the Banyan Academy for Leadership in Mental Health (BALM) in partnership with IDFC FIRST Bank, also hosted a webinar on the occasion of World Mental Health Day, the October 10.
The webinar included a diverse panel of panelists, including Dr A Lakshmi Ravikanth, Co-Dean, BALM; Sadaf Vidha, psychotherapist and co-founder of Guftagu Therapy; Nandhini, peer leader at Banyan and Rachana Iyer, Head – Corporate Social Responsibility, IDFC FIRST Bank. The panel was moderated by senior journalist Ranjitha Gunasekaran, deputy editor of Tamil Nadu, The New Indian Express. Each speaker brought their unique perspectives contributing to an open dialogue on this topic specific to the Indian context.
Created in 2018 by the merger of the famous infrastructure finance institution IDFC Ltd. and cutting edge technology NBFC, Capital First, IDFC FIRST Bank, with a balance sheet of over Rs. 1.68,000 crore, has made over 30 million loans during its combined history and serves clients in over 60,000 villages, towns and villages across the country. The vision of IDFC FIRST Bank is to serve a budding India, supported by human values ​​and technology, and to be a force for social good. The Bank’s mission is to reach millions of Indians in a positive way.
In a short time, the Bank expanded to 601 branches, 161 asset service centers, 609 ATMs and 94 recyclers and 623 rural business correspondent centers across the country, a new net and mobile banking platform. generation and 24/7 customer support services, and is gradually expanding digitally. IDFC FIRST Bank is committed to providing high quality banking services at affordable rates in India. The Bank also offers technology-based business banking solutions.
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