Dr. C .Ramasubramanian., M.D., D.P.M., Ph.D.,

Dr. C. Ramasubramanian brings 40 years of extensive experience and professional expertise in the field of mental health. He completed his undergraduate and postgraduate medical education at Madurai Medical College and earned a Doctorate in Community Psychiatry from Madurai Kamaraj University in Tamil Nadu. He began his career in 1979 with Tamil Nadu Medical and Health Services, with a particular focus on Community Psychiatry and Psychosocial Rehabilitation.

Dr. C. Ramasubramanian's vision for comprehensive rehabilitation services for individuals with mental disabilities was inspired by his personal experience of caring for his brother with mental illness and the accompanying stigma and discrimination his family faced.

Driven by a deep desire as a ‘wounded healer,’ Dr. Ramasubramanian sought to offer more than just medication to people with mental illness; he wanted to provide new hope. He aimed to address the fear that every parent of a child with mental illness carries: ‘what will happen to our child after us?’ His goal was to help people see individuals with mental illness as assets to their families rather than liabilities.

Dr C Ramasubramanian
Contributions towards Mental Health Activism

Dr. Ramasubramanian’s contributions as a mental health activist are significant in the following areas:

  • ❖ Enhancing awareness on mental health among the public.
  • ❖ Promoting and implementing community models of psychiatric treatment and rehabilitation.
  • ❖ Enhancing human resources for quality mental health care delivery through capacity building of professionals and Spearheading advocacy for policy decisions in mental health.
  • Positions held
  • Accomplishments

    Dr. C. Ramasubramanian holds the following positions currently:

  • President, World Association of Psycho-Social Rehabilitation (Indian Chapter)
  • Nodal Officer, Police Wellbeing Programme, Tamil Nadu
  • Member, Committee established by the Department of Technical Education, Tamil Nadu for the welfare of the students
  • Member of the Institute body, National Institute of the Mental Health and Neurosciences (Institute of National Importance),Bangalore
  • Advisor, Mental Health Program, Alagappa University, Karaikudi
  • Advisor, Mental Health Program, Madurai Kamaraj University, Madurai
  • Founder, MS Chellamuthu Trust and Research Foundation (MSCT&RF)
  • President, Indian Association for the Blind, Madurai.
  • Member, High-level committee, Department of Rehabilitation, Tamil Nadu
  • Member, Welfare Board for the Disabled, Government of Tamil Nadu
  • Consultant Psychiatrist, Ahana Hospitals, Madurai
  • Consultant Psychiatrist, Venkateshwara Hospital, Chennai.

    Dr. C. Ramasubramanian has wide-ranging experience in the field of mental health. Some of his accomplishments worth mentioning include:

  • In recognition of his exemplary contribution to community mental health, Dr. Ramasubramanian was appointed as the State Nodal Officer for the Mental Health Programme of Tamil Nadu, which is currently being implemented in 25 districts in the state, which is the highest in the country. Indeed, this is an accomplishment since the District Mental Health Programme (DMHP), acclaimed as one of the best in the country, provides comprehensive mental health care and has ensured basic psychiatric care in all the 12,000 villages in the state. There are about 12 lakh persons with mental illness and disabilities who have utilized the services of the DMHP.
  • In a nationwide survey by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR 2010) on the overall satisfaction with the services provided for people with mental disabilities under the District Mental Health Programme, Tamil Nadu, Madurai, topped the list, scoring 9.6 out of 10. Madurai District has the distinction of providing the highest quality mental health care services in the country.
  • Dr Ramasubramanian has been instrumental in establishing the District Level Special Board for the welfare of the disabled population at the District Head Quarters Hospitals, Tamil Nadu. The District Mental Health Programme, Ramnad, was selected as the Best Community Mental Health Project (rural) in India by the University of Melbourne, Australia. Currently, this project has been selected for a collaborative program between India and Australia.
  • Dr Ramasubramanian initiated the concept of inclusion of people with mental disabilities in the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee (MNREGA) Scheme year, a flagship welfare scheme of the Government of India
  • As a result of this unique initiative in the country, people with mental disabilities/caregivers in every village in Tamil Nadu are assured work for at least 100 days in a year.
  • Dr. Ramasubramanian is a technical advisor for “Development of a Comprehensive Programme for Children with Developmental Disorders,” Dindigul District, Tamil Nadu, a project of the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), in collaboration with NIMHANS and MSCT&RF.
  • MSCT&RF has conducted a household survey of 4,60,000 families and screened 88,000 children for disabilities.
  • As a State Nodal Officer for the Police Wellbeing program of the Tamil Nadu Police Department, Dr Ramasubramanian supports the Police Department in taking care of the well-being needs of the entire police force in the State
  • Dr Ramasubramanian is a recipient of the State & District Award as BEST DOCTOR.

  • Principal Investigator of National Mental Health Survey (2015), conducted by the Govt. of India in collaboration with the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru.
  • Principal Investigator (2015) in developing a need-based model on Community Mental Health in India under the Asia Pacific Community Mental Health Development, a collaborative program between India and Australia.
  • President, World Association of Psycho-Social Rehabilitation (Indian Chapter)
  • Member, Academic Council of NIMHANS (Deemed University), Bengaluru.
  • Member, Executive Council, Indian Association for Social Psychiatry.
  • Chairperson, Community Psychiatry, South Zone, Indian Psychiatric Society (IPS).
  • Chairperson, Psychiatric Rehabilitation Specialty Section, Indian Psychiatric Society.
  • In a nationwide survey by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR 2010) on the overall satisfaction with the services provided for people with mental disabilities under the District Mental Health Program, Tamil Nadu, Madurai, topped the list, scoring 9.6 out of 10. Madurai District has the distinction of providing the highest quality mental health care services in the country.
  • Dr Ramasubramanian has been instrumental in establishing the District Level Special Board for the welfare of the disabled population at the District Head Quarters Hospitals, Tamil Nadu.
  • The District Mental Health Program, Ramnad, was selected as the Best Community Mental Health Project (rural) in India by the University of Melbourne, Australia. Currently, this project has been selected for a collaborative program between India and Australia.
  • Dr Ramasubramanian initiated the concept of inclusion of people with mental disabilities in the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee (MNREGA) Scheme year, a flagship welfare scheme of the Government of India. As a result of this unique initiative in the country, people with mental disabilities/caregivers in every village in Tamil Nadu are assured work for at least 100 days in a year.

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