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By Karin Reibel | Project leaders
As we approach the beginning of the year 2025 we look back on fifteen years of our DCWC Community Hospital taking shape, functioning, persevering and contributing to the greater Rajbash Community. From the early conceptual ideas in 2007 to the realized vision of today’s expansive hospital community we successfully managed challenges, successes and setbacks with the robust support of you, our donor community.
And when we think of the Hospital, are we speaking of its service, its personnel, its physical plant? Of course, they all are vital parts of a functioning hospital. Today, however, I want to take you through a bit of history of the hospital compound itself. Yes, a compound, consisting of mainly 4 buildings: the original 15 bed hospital, the staff residence, the new 36 bed hospital and a kitchen and guest quarters building.
Construction began in 2008 on land generously donated by the grandfather of DCWC’s founder, Akka Lama, and with funding from our support communities in Great Britain and the Czech Republic. Carving out a hillside to accommodate our hospital was no small feat. But by 2010 the Rajbash hospital was seeing its first patients. In 2011 we provided the means to add a much needed Pharmacy building right below the Hospital entrance. It serves today as the pharmacy as well as the hospital reception area. The resident staff building was added in 2014. Through our newly formed partnership with GlobalGiving we raised the funds to install solar panels on the hospital. In April of 2014 a severe earthquake in Nepal had a particularly devastating impact on rural communities. Many people lost their shelters and landslides buried farmland that had provided livelihoods. Our hospital, in spite of having sustained some damage itself, became the center of the government relief efforts for the Rajbash area. The reconstruction and mitigation efforts brought large numbers of volunteers and government workers to the area. Housing was needed and our ‘kitchen facility’ needed an upgrade. Food prep and cooking for staff and patients had been carried out in a bamboo hut outfitted with a stove, sink and some tables. With the support of our California supporters DCWC erected another structure to house our kitchen and dining area as well as providing quarters for visiting volunteers.
Then, suddenly, our project took an important turn: The new government decided that Nepal needed more ‘CommunityHospitals’ to serve its population. As DCWC worked closely with the government in the earthquake mitigation efforts the Nepali government decided to provide funds for an additional 36 bed structure to be added to our existing 15bed hospital and thus to meet the requirements for a Community Hospital (51 beds). A huge boon, yes, but DCWC would have to provide the funds for managing the project (governmental paperwork), source most of the equipment and furniture and set up the wards. All of this is being accomplished with the support of our donor communities and is ongoing today.
Here are some of the changes that have occurred:
In the old hospital building we have enlarged the laboratory space. Our birthing center now includes separate spaces for pre-natal (incl. ultra sound) and postnatal care, a birthing room and a separate counseling room. There also are night staff quarters and an administrative office.
The new building will house the x-ray department, Emergency ward, 2 minor operating theaters, general out-patient department, physiotherapy, Dental ward, Eye ward, special outpatient ward, operating theater and post-operative wards, Nursing station & new OPD ward for once a month specialist.
We hope that as you read this you see how far we’ve come from the original dream of a small rural hospital to a substantial medical facility and you, the reader, have helped us realize this incredible endeavor through your steadfast support of our mission. We are grateful to you for having taken this journey with us and hope we can count on your continued support.
By Chanda Lama | Project Leader
By Patrick Graney, Karin Reibel | Project leaders
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