KATHMANDU: The Hepatitis E, Jaundice, epidemic outbreak in Biratnagar area of Morang district has continued to spread as the number of people receiving treatment for the disease crossed over one thousand. The increase in numbers of infected have thrown hospitals out of capacity and are forced to treat victims on the floor.
The District Public Health Office’s data claimed that the district has recorded 1183 incidents of Hepatitis E infected patients of which 17 are being treated in hospitals and 9 have lost their lives to the disease.
Efforts made by concerned authorities have failed to prevent the disease from spreading and efforts have been put to identify the cause of the outbreak.
Commenting on the efforts made to avert the disease from increasing, DPHO Morang’s chief said that efforts have been made to call on citizens for drinking boiled water and hygienic food.
Meanwhile, a Chief District Officer Ganesh Raj Karki led investigation team has started investigation in finding the cause behind the infiltration of the Coliform bacteria- a bacteria that is found in human excreta- in the drinking water system. As part of the investigation the team has inspected drainage system of some big hotels in the town and have figured out that the sewerage pipes and drinking water pipes were laid together.
A member of the team, Upendra Rai, Chief at the Regional Food Technology and Quality Control Office, said that ‘waste management system of the hotels has been terrific.”
Rai said that some hotels have been draining human waste and kitchen waste in the Municipalities drainage system without using any filtering process. Karki said that as the drinking water pipeline also run adjacent to the sewerage pipe, it might have infected the water.

A three point agreement was signed between the agitating doctors, supporting Dr KC and the OPMCM Secretary Krishna Hari Banskota.

As per the agreement a high level committee led by former dean of Institute of Medicine Ramesh Kant Adhikari will conduct a feasiblty study to provide autonomy to the Institute of Medicene (IoM).

The agreement has further agreed to appoint new dean of IoM on the basis of seniority, and lastly the government will formulate a policy paper on providing IoM affiliations to medical colleges.

Following the deal, Dr KC ended his fast by accepting fruit juice from Alisha Thapa, a seven-year-old patient at the TU Teaching Hospital.

Following the acceptance, Dr. KC has been recieving treatment at the ICU of the hospital and his health condition is reported to be improving.

Following the end of fasting, Nepal Medical Association (NMA) also withdrew its nation wide strike.

More than two dozens villagers have been suffering from the disease after being bitten by stray dogs at Dhime and Jagatipur VDCs.

The patients died due to shortage of anti-rabies vaccine at the District Hospital.

The stock of the vaccine has run out and the hospital has demanded for more vaccines from the Regional Health Office, said Dhir Jung Shah, Assistant Chief of the District Public Health Office, Jajarkot.

A source at the Ministry of Health and Population said that the decision would be implemented in the offing if the Finance Ministry agrees to allocate required amount of budget.

A high-level source in the Ministry of Health said that internal preparations have been concluded for distributing the medicines from the new fiscal year.

“Preparations have been made for distributing medicines for incommunicable diseases in view of the increase in these diseases day-by-day,” Prof Dr Ananda Kumar Shrestha, Chief of the Primary Health Service Recovery Directorate.

According to a study conducted by the World Health Organisation (WHO), incommunicable diseases than communicable ones have killed many people in Nepal.

Forty-eight per cent of the total deaths due to disease are caused by communicable diseases and the non-communicable diseases are responsible for the remaining percentage, WHO stated in a report.

Twenty to 25 different types of medicines for non-communicable diseases would be distributed to the patients free of cost. Currently, the Ministry has been providing 40 different types of medicines free of cost in hospitals with maximum of 25 beds and 35 different types of medicines free of cost at the Primary Health Centres.

The Ministry started providing free health services and medicines since 2010 as per its policy of making the basic health services accessible to the people. The government spends around 1.5 billion rupees annually for this purpose.

DUBLIN: The United Nations Children’s Fund says that more than a quarter of children under age 5 worldwide are permanently “stunted” from malnutrition, leaving them physically and intellectually weak and prone to early death.

In a report published Monday in Dublin, it says better provision of vitamins, clean water and breastfeeding could have helped these 165 million children achieve normal brain and body development.

The 24 countries with high levels of stunted children are concentrated in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

More than half of children in Timor-Leste, Burundi, Niger and Madagascar are stunted. The country with the largest number of stunted children is India with 61.7 million, or 48 percent of all Indians under age 5.

Ireland has brought together experts worldwide to discuss efforts to combat stunting.

Dean of the Institute of Medicine (IoM) Prakash Sayami appointed Prof Sinha for a week assigning him to execute all works carried out by hospital’s executive director, according to TUTH’s Health Inspector Ram Bikram Adhikari. Sinha is an ENT specialist.

Earlier, hospital’s executive director Dr Koirala had resigned citing noncooperation from the colleagues and seniors.

However, in a telephone call last evening, Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai asked Koirala to return to his post by folding the resignation letter pledging a fully working environment.

SAPTARI: Minister for Health and Population Rajendra Mahato has said that the country would get an outlet of the ongoing constitutional and political crises within few days.

Laying the foundation stone of Out-patient Department (OPD) to be constructed at the premises of Rajbiraj-based Gajendra Narayan Singh Zonal Hospital today, Minister Mahato said that the nation would get an outlet of the ongoing crises as political parties have reached close to a consensus.

The Department is going to be constructed with the support of the Sai Krishna Foundation for Health Medical Sciences.

Stating that necessary process for the formation of the Chief Justice-led election government for free and fair election has began, he claimed that the CJ-led election government would be formed by March 8.

The Health Minister said that consensus was forged among political parties to form the CJ-led election government as election was the only alternative for an outlet to the existing crises facing the country.

He stressed on the need of providing citizenship by decent to children of those who acquired citizenship by birth.

On a different note, the Health Minister, who is also the Chairman of the Sadhbhawana Party, fulfilling human resources at health institutions has become difficult as the concerned Ordinance is still with the President.

Minister Mahato said that he urged the President to endorse the Ordinance immediately and claimed that it would ensure that people get quality health services from the villages itself as the Act provides for a doctor and laboratory services in every VDC of the country.

On the occasion, Medical Superintendent of the Hospital, Dr. Tek Narayan Mandal urged the Health Minister to help arrange skilled human resources, physical infrastructures and other requirements of the hospital.

KATHMANDU: Veteran cardiologist and executive director at the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital (TUTH) Dr Bhagawan Koirala has resigned from the post.

He said, “I resigned two days back. There are multiple reasons to quit the post. I will leave the hospital by tomorrow or the day after tomorrow.”

Dr Koirala is known as one of the seniormost cardiologist in the country who has devoted himself to this job for long providing services to thousands of heart patients.

Earlier, he was also the executive director at the Sahid Gangalal National Heart Center for eight years, making the hospital one of the sought after treatment center in the country.

Many believe that organizational mess and noncooperation of the staffers at the TUTH is one of the reasons for Dr Koirala’s resignation.

HETAUDA: The Rotary Club of Hetauda in association with Rotary Club of Tasmania, Australia, organized an eye camp in Hetauda. The Rotary Club of Tasmania has been supporting ‘Gift of Sight’ eye camp in Hetauda since 2010 every year.

Four screening sites were established in remote villages in Chitwan, Bara, Rautahat and Makawanpur districts. A total of 1047 people received the service, according to organizers. Of the patients, 179 were referred to the Hetauda Eye Hospital for cataract surgery.

Similarly, the Rotarians from Tasmania are also sponsoring to develop physical infrastructure at the Srijana Primary School in Hetauda. It is expected that the construction work will be completed by this year and total cost of the project is 27000 Australian dollars.

The Australian Rotarians discussed with the rotary club of Hetauda regarding the possibility of building a drinking water project at Handikhola in the district. The project would be built at the investment of 76,000 Australian dollars.

The Ministry says the preparation of policy to run pharmacies has reached the final phase.

MoHP is to run pharmacies at the hospitals under it after public complaints were received against pharmacies selected through open competition by hospitals.

Secretary at the Ministry, Dr. Praveen Mishra, said that the Ministry has directed hospitals to make necessary preparation to run pharmacies itself and not to call for new bids.

Health services have been provided through more than 100 hospitals including central, zonal and district level hospitals under the Ministry.

Pharmacies have been run at the premises of such hospitals and outside of hospital by private sector through open competition.

Meanwhile, the Ministry has got permission from the cabinet to assign 330 specialist doctors to fulfill the vacant posts.

Chief of the Medical Division at the Ministry, Prof. Dr. Tirtha Burlakoti said that works related to this would be forwarded soon.