KATHMANDU: Researchers for a group of universities have identified five key 'barriers to healthcare' that discourage people from using healthcare services in Nepal.

Issuing a press release today, Bournemouth University said researchers have identified five themes as points of difficulty in providing healthcare services to ethnic minorities including those of the Dalits, Madhesi, Muslim, Chepang and Tamang groups in Nepal.

Bournemouth University's Professor Edwin van Teijlingen, who worked on the study, said, "Working together with collaborators from Stanford University, Liverpool John Moores Univesity, the University of Sheffield and the University of Huddersfield, we have identified five key 'barriers' to healthcare in Nepal among ethnic minorities," in the statement.

"Perceived indignity and a lack of knowledge in healthcare provision, together with a mistrust of volunteers, low decision-making power among females, and traditional religious practices, has made access to services difficult," reads the statement.

For achieving universal healthcare coverage for maternal and child health in low and middle-income countries, both the female community health volunteers and local healthcare providers should be trained to communicate effectively in order to deliver respectful care among ethnic minorities.