Doctors do good

Anne has been talking to a birthing centre in Kalanki, on the outskirts of Kathmandu, for a little while now. I was able to bring some things from Australia to help them. Anne is bringing herself to volunteer for them next year. The centre is run by volunteers. I’m not talking about these ‘fly ins’ who swan about…this is maintained by Nepalese who have jobs and, on top of their ‘normal’ work, do additional shifts at the birthing centre to keep it going. This is for the poorest of the poor who cannot even afford a few rupees for care or medication. In really basic conditions and kept afloat by hope, hard work and some donations of time, supplies and money they manage to help around 150 women each year who would otherwise have no support at all. That’s really putting yourself out there. I visited Dr Deepak and Rashmi to give them the things I had been able to bring. Of course the extra stuff that I had left behind in Australia because I selfishly wanted to fit in clothes was high on their wish list. It is whisking its way to Nepal as we speak courtesy of Australia Post. Next time Anne is packing and I am buying clothes when I arrive here. http://www.apskendra.org.np/volunteer.php   


    

(Dr Deepak and Rashmi –A.P.S Kendra, Kalanki)

 At the other end of hte spectrum I was lucky to be able to go to Dhulikhel http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dhulikhel for the convocation of Kathmandu University’s http://www.ku.edu.np/  medical students. Around 400 graduated and now head out into the wide world as newly qualified doctors. Around 40% female and around 40% from outside Nepal. Unfortunately it is difficult to persuade these new doctors to go out into rural Nepal to practice and, indeed, to even stay in the country in many cases.  The setting is spectacular…sitting on top of a steep ridge with the backdrop of snow covered peaks in the distance. The teaching hospital attached to the university, Dhulikhel Hospital http://www.dhulikhelhospital.org/  , was started by an Austrian doctor some 15 years ago and has grown into one of the largest and most modern in Nepal. Childreach is working in partnership with the outreach midwife program (run by Dr Anjana) where there are 14 local areas represented by people training to go back into those areas to help them improve their maternal outcomes. Although it isn’t a large area there are around 1.5mill people and, as a lot of the terrain is vertical or worse the travel time between villages is sometimes extreme.

 

            (Bhaktapur, Kathmandu Valley)                                      (Dr Zim, Tshering and JD –Kathmandu University)