Health

Nepal SEEDS supports culturally appropriate healthcare system for rural communities. For centuries medical practitioners (amchis) of traditional Tibetan medicine (Sowa Rigpa) have been the primary healthcare providers in the Himalayan highlands, using pulse diagnosis to identify diseases and making medicines from the region’s potent plants. Nepal SEEDS encourages the practice of Sowa Rigpa by supporting clinics in Nubri and Tsum staffed by local amchis. These dedicated men and women see patients daily for complaints including gastrointestinal and respiratory illnesses, parasites, childbirth complications, and wounds incurred from the daily hazards of working in a mountain environment.

Nepal SEEDS and CAN (UK-based Community Action Nepal) have collaborated with local Women’s Associations to organize 12 health training workshops throughout Nubri and Tsum focusing on household sanitation, nutrition, reproductive health, and the treatment of common childhood ailments.

Health training workshops combined with support for medical clinics helped reduce Nubri’s infant mortality rate from 22% to 4% of live births in under two decades. Today fewer children are born and a higher percentage survive due to reproductive health improvements. Nyima Diki, leader of a Nubri Woman’s Association, recently commented on the impact of these workshops.