Support Medical Care in Rural Nepal
Support Medical Care in Rural Nepal
Plentishare has been supporting a medical dispensary in the mountainous northern region of Nepal, as well as a young doctor who is dedicated to helping this rural population.
Access to Medical Care
A dispensary and a doctor’s presence can mean the difference between life and death in a place where the nearest hospital is hours away. Even basic medical needs can become life-threatening without proper treatment. While most young doctors stay in the cities, financial support for our health post means that a doctor can attend patients in a village that is a five hours’ walk from Lamjung district hospital, and that he can purchase basic supplies for the dispensary.
Dr. Robin Thapa
Dr. Thapa graduated in 2013 from medical school and works as a General Practitioner to reach those who are deprived of the most basic care. The majority of Nepal’s doctors remain in the cities after their studies, but Dr. Thapa is also greatly concerned about the 80% of Nepal’s population living in rural areas. He has set up the dispensary to treat patients with the medicines they need, to triage urgent injuries, and to identify contagious diseases and HIV/AIDS.
Nepal: one of the poorest countries
Medical care is only accessible to those who can afford it
Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world. Medical care in Nepal is rudimentary and only accessible to those who can afford it. All specialized care is centralized in the large cities like Kathmandu. Approximately 80% of Nepal’s population of 30 million are residents of rural areas with little or no access to medical help.
While several private medical training colleges have recently opened their doors, most graduates seek to work in the capital, Kathmandu, with private practices or/and work in one of the university hospitals.
In practice this means that common people in rural areas do not get the treatment they need.
Reach patients in remote areas
Treating people on the spot
Dr. Thapa and some other medically trained friends want to develop a system to be able to reach patients in remote areas “simply by going there.” In this way people who are in need can often be treated on the spot, or can be helped on to the nearest district hospital.
"Once I reach the last village I walk 20 minutes downhill to reach the village. Here I work in the clinic (health post) for 5 hours. After the clinic is done I take a 5 minute walk to reach the place where I stay. It is a home stay where I spend 2 nights and have my meals there." — Dr. Thapa