April 5th 2018
Making the cardiac care accessible throughout Nepal has been one of the principal objectives of the Jayanti Memorial Trust. In this context, Manmohan Cardiothoracic Vascular and Transplant Centre (MCVTC) and Jayanti Memorial Trust (JMT) in association with Karnali Academy and Health Science (KAHS) have jointly conducted a cardiac camp in Jumla. Jumla, hidden away in the foothills of the Sisne Himalaya, the remote area of Midwestern area of Nepal with the altitude of 2730m lies on the bank of Tila River, 953.8 km away from Kathmandu.
In Nepal, the capital city has the best health facilities, but standards at the clinics and hospitals decline the further you get from the capital. Thus, in mountainous areas, like Jumla the health facilities and the care are far from desirable. The cardiac care is generally inaccessible to the locals of Jumla. Henceforth, aiming in making the proper cardiac care accessible and addressing the health issues at its best, we jointly held the free cardiac health camp in the Jumla by a team led by Prof. Dr. Bhagwan Koirala.
In total, two senior cardiac surgeons, two cardiologists, two medical officers, one nursing supervisor, two nurses, two technicians and four project supervisors headed for the camp. The two days camp was conducted within the premises of Karnali Academy and Health Sciences.
Overall, we consider the camp was highly successful. This made the cardiac screening and care accessible to the locals of Jumla, at their door-steps. Many patients with financial support and thus in need for further support were offered special schemes of health subsidies, thereby, reducing the financial burden. We believe through this camp, we were also able to make the locals of Jumla aware of the health subsidies provided by the government and the trust as well. Lastly, the camp was followed by Continuing Medical Education where three topics were presented and discussed.
On this note, we would like to sincerely extend our gratitude to Manmohan Cardiothoracic Vascular & Transplant Centre, Karnali Academy & Health Sciences and Quest Pharmaceuticals for the support. Also, we would like to thank The University of Colorado and Thoracic S. F for the financial support provided to conduct this camp. The camp would not have been a success without a combined effort of technical support from MCVTC, local arrangements from KAHS and distribution of the medicines for free of cost for hundreds of patients by the Quest Pharmaceuticals.