Ockhi has fishers take to intoxicants

Thiruvananthapuram: Besides post-traumatic stress disorder, the psychosocial survey of Ockhi-affected families in the district has thrown up another disturbing trend: substance abuse among fisherfolk.  The survey, conducted by the District Medical Health Mission, has found that 50 percent of the 518 families that were visited by the psychosocial team had members struggling with liquor addiction.

“Some of the survivors, after having struggled for days in the sea, were grappling with withdrawal symptoms at the hospital,” said Dr Kiran P S, the nodal officer of the District Medical Health Mission. Uncontrollable tremors and regular anxiety attacks were the most noted mnifestations of the withdrawal syndrome. “Some 20-odd survivors who exhibited such peculiarities were taken care of at the Medical College and General Hospital,” Dr Kiran said.

The challenge is to address liquor addiction among fisherfolk in general.  “Consumption of liquor is quite common in coastal areas. It could be the nature of their work that prompts fisherfolk to consume liquor. But steps should be taken to ensure that the habit does not go out of control,” Dr Kiran said. “It were the women in the families who told the survey teams that they somehow want this habit to stop. The habit was draining them of their meagre income,” he said.

A plan of action will be charted out to address the issue. “But for this the district administration will have to take into confidence the local bodies and other influential institutions like the church,” Dr Kiran said. “It is not just enough to wean them from liquor, there should be a system in place that will motivate fisherfolk to keep away from the substance,” he said.

Post-trauma stress is the other big problem the survivors and families that have lost their dear ones suffer. “Both survivors, and also those belonging to families that have lost close ones, have developed a fear of the sea. They seem to have developed an anxiety about venturing out into the sea,” Dr Kiran said. A psychosocial strategy to address the issues will be drawn up in a week’s time.

As many as 20 two-member teams, each team consisting of a school counsellor and an RBSK nurse, were despatched to talk to the affected families. There were 18 families that had suffered deaths, 139 that were facing the trauma of missing family members, and 361 that had survivors who were going through post-traumatic stress disorder.