Dr. Murthy has clinical expertise in numerous mental health disorders (from mental retardation to dementia) and has worked with teachers, volunteers and a variety of non-professionals in fostering broader understanding of mental health. His research included community mental health, schizophrenia, national mental health programs, and training of non-professionals in mental health care. Dr. Murthy has written more than 10 books and has been published in more than 200 journals. Book titles include
Mental Health by the People (2006);
Decade of the Brain (1995);
Reaching the Unreached- Mental Health in Countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Region of WHO (2006); and
Community Mental Health in India, 1950-2000 (2000). He has presented at numerous international and national conferences, and at other levels.
A postgraduate teacher of psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, psychiatric social workers and nurses for nearly three decades (1975-2003), Dr. Murthy has also trained mental health care workers in disaster relief since 1984. He was editor-in-chief of the WHO's 2001 World Health Report on mental health, and was WHO's acting Regional Advisor for Mental Health for the Eastern Mediterranean office in Cairo (2003-2005). He served briefly as WHO's Mental Health Officer in Sudan early in 2006 and is currently serving in a similar position in Iraq. From 1984-1991, Dr. Murthy was in charge of the Advanced Centre for Research in Community Mental Health, the Indian Council of Medical Research, in New Delhi. He conducted a number of research projects for WHO from 1975-2003.
Dr. Murthy was born in India, and grew up there. He earned his medical degree through the Christian Medical College, Vellore, India, and also holds a master's degree in psychiatry from the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, India. He has traveled extensively throughout Asia, Africa, Europe, and North and South America. He speaks several Indian languages (Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Hindi) and English.
