Since its inception, the Central Institute of Psychiatry (CIP), Ranchi has seen incessant strides in the arena of social and behavioural sciences. Many novel techniques in the field of Social Psychiatry, Psychiatric Social Work and Rehabilitation had been planned and implemented at this institute. Examples of such steps include the introduction of a full-fledged ‘Occupational Therapy Unit’ for treatment and vocational skills development of mentally ill people taking treatment in the hospital in 1922, building up cottages outside the periphery of the hospital for keeping patients and their kin for providing family therapy in 1929 and introduction of token economy immediately after starting of the Occupational Therapy Unit.

The Department of Psychiatric Social Work started disseminating the academic and clinical training for Psychiatric Social Workers by starting the Diploma in Psychiatric Social Work (DPSW) Course in the late 1960s. Initially, the Institute made this Course available to Post Graduates in the subjects of Sociology, Social Anthropology and other Social Science subjects. In the decade of 1990s, this course was upgraded into M.Phil. in Psychiatric Social Work by the Ranchi University. The Department of Psychiatric Social Work with the active support of the Institute established the Indian Society for Psychiatric Social Workers (later renamed as Indian Society for Professional Social Workers or ISPSW), which was the first of its kind in this country. Subsequently, a Journal, namely Indian Journal of Psychiatric Social Work was launched from this Institute to promote academic, research and clinical discourses in the field of Psychiatric Social Work in this country.

Departmental Activities

The trainees are given overall exposure of mental health and behavioural science with the aim to instil the ‘unitedness and working alliance among all mental health disciplines (e.g., Psychiatry, Clinical Psychology, Psychiatric Nursing and other allied disciplines)’. The students are also given ample privileges and opportunities to develop their clinical and academic skills. The student-trainees are entrusted to take up daily routine clinical and therapeutic activities at both in-patient and out-patient levels. They learn to dispense family and community based therapeutic services for people with mental illnesses under the direct supervision of the faculty.