The practice of ect in India : issues relating yo the administration of ect.

A questionnaire on ECT, tapping altitudes, opinions and usage, was mailed to all medical members of the Indian Psychiatric Society whose addresses were known; 263 (28.8%) responded. This paper, the first in a series that presents the results of the survey, provides demographic data on the respondents and covers issues relating to the administration of ECT. Specific issues discussed include the ECT personnel, location of the ECT facility, certain ECT prescription patterns, psychiatrist-patient interactions on suggestion of ECT, pre-ECT investigations, frequency of administration of ECT, use of regressive ECT and maintenance ECT, length of the ECT course across diagnoses, and use of psychotropic drugs in relation to the ECT course.