Kathmandu, June 10

Well-equipped local health facilities in remote areas of various quake-hit districts are delivering quality health services.

A case in point could be Lagarche Health Post at Lagarche in Sindhupalchowk district. The locals have been receiving medical services from the health post, housed in a pre-fab building with modern medical equipment and trained health assistants.

Chief of the health post Rupa KC, recalled, “The health post was being run in a hut when I joined this office 18 months ago. The health post was devoid of essential equipment and medicines.”

The health post underwent a sea-change after Nepal Red Cross Society helped with the new prefab building and modern equipment. A total of seven health personnel are currently working in the centre that also has birthing facility.

KC shared that an average of 38 service seekers visit the health post daily that operates round the clock. A total of 17 pregnant women have received services from the birthing centre in a year, with majority of them being able to give birth to their babies in the facility.

“The referral cases are very less. I assure the health centre has not run short on medicines,” she said.

With the help of NRCS,  14 health posts are being built in various places of Sindhupalchowk including, Lagarche, Ichowk, Keul, Mahakal and Jyamire. Of them, four have been rebuilt and already handed over to the Ministry of Health, including the one at Lagarche, while the construction of pre-fab buildings in the rest 10 health posts has reached its final stage, according to NRCS’s quake-resilience programme’s health coordinator Dr Mausam Bohora.

An agreement was also inked between the MoH and the NRCS for reconstruction of health posts in Mahendra Jyoti and Pokharichaur, among other places, in Kavrepalanchowk; Gothatar in Kathmandu; Chandanpur in Lalitpur; Sudal in Bhaktapur; Kalleri in Dhading; and Dhunche in Rasuwa.

The Canadian Red Cross  has pledged support for Rasuwa hospital and the Korean Red Cross for   Kavre and Dhading  hospitals.