Humla, February 6

Health services have been hit hard due to lack of heath workers in various health facilities in Humla. The district has a total of 30 health facilities, including 26 health posts, one district hospital and three community health centres.

According to information officer at the District Public Health Office Naresh Shrestha, of the total 192 posts of health workers in the district, 90 posts are lying vacant. Though there are three doctors’ posts at DHO, only one doctor has been deployed there.

Health facilities in the remote parts of the district such as Muchu, Maila, Madena, Bari, Ridikot, Hepka and Shreemastawa, among others, have been worst hit due to the lack of health workers.

“Around 47 per cent posts are lying vacant at various health facilities in the district,” Shrestha said, adding, “Out of 55 posts each for assistant health workers and assistant nursing midwife, 25 and 22 of them are lying vacant, respectively. Out of 28 posts for health assistants, 16 are lying vacant.”

Many a time, peons attend to patients. Parturition service has also been affected due to shortage of health workers. “Health workers rarely stay in the health centres as the district is remote. Often, they take leave and go to the district headquarters or other accessible places, or get transferred to better places,” said Nawaraj Mahatara, a local journalist of Humla.

Dhanarupa Bogati, of Maila VDC, rued how the lack of female health workers had affected women patients visiting the health facilities for parturition service. “Village women hardly go to the health facilities for medical check-up,” she said.

Chief District Officer of Humla Dr Krishna Bahadur Ghimire said his office was doing the needful to end the manpower shortage. “I’ve come to know about the problem and we are doing the needful. As for now, most of the health workers are either on leave or deputation,” said the CDO.

Regarding the manpower crunch, regional health directorate Surkhet Information Officer Khemraj Upadhyaya, however, expressed ignorance about the situation of health centres on the district. “Since the matter falls under the jurisdiction of either DPHO or public service commission, We have no information on the matter,” he argued.