Abstract
Mental health conditions contribute to a great deal of mortality and disability, accounting for 8.8% and 16.6% of the total disease burden due to health conditions in low- and middle-income countries, respectively. Psychiatric rehabilitation services promote recovery, community reintegration, and quality of life for persons with psychiatric disabilities (PwD). A holistic approach to rehabilitation and improving service delivery is vital in managing people’s disabilities. We have discussed one such service in Israel, “basket service”, relevant to India. Israel’s Rehabilitation of the Mentally Disabled in the Community Law (RMD), unique legislation, intends to facilitate recovery in all mentally disabled. Adults with not less than 40% psychiatric disability are eligible to receive the basket services through Kupot Holim and access a range of services through National Insurance Institute. Reforms have led to significant changes in Israel’s structure and delivery of mental health services. Studying Israel’s model of basket service in comparison to Indian rehabilitation services and the WHO-CBR matrix could offer insights into the need for such services, dedicated legislation on psychiatric rehabilitation, and dedicated funding across countries. For a country like India, which has already made significant progress in establishing rehabilitation services for PwD, such a service can offer new directions for improving the systems through emerging telepsychiatry, strong advocacy, and District Mental Health Program.