Bring healthcare to thousands in rural Nepal

Twenty-five years ago, Himalayan HealthCare came to the villages of Nepal’s Northern Dhading District to find that no vaccines had reached these remote mountain communities. The government health clinic in the village of Sertung had gone unstaffed for two years and had no medications in stock. In the village of Tipling, teachers failed to show up for classes, and school enrollment stood at a mere 15 students. There was no access to sanitation facilities or safe drinking water, and children’s heads were covered in lice.

Each year, the monsoon season claimed the lives of countless children from diarrheal diseases, measles, polio and other vaccine-preventable diseases. In 1992, the under-five mortality rate was 236 per 1,000 live births. In other words, one in four children did not live to see their 5th birthday.

Today, thanks to Himalayan HealthCare’s interventions, tens of thousands of individuals now have a chance at life and hope for a better future.

Since 1992, Himalayan HealthCare has:

• Treated 292,788 patients in need of care at health clinics in the Dhading villages and at our community hospital in Ilam.  Under-five mortality has decreased to 31 per 1,000 live births, well below the national average. 
• Supported 5,278 students with scholarships, school stipends, support for higher education and literacy programs. Tipling’s school enrollment has increased to more than 300 students with a 90% pass rate for the national-level School Leaving Certificate exam, ranking it among the top three in the entire district. 
• Cultivated 1,670 microenterprises through training, loans and access to markets for artisans, farmers and other entrepreneurs. Young people are growing up with more advanced skills sets and a commitment to giving back to their communities.
• Provided widespread disaster relief following severe flooding and famine in 1998 and the devastating earthquakes of 2015.  

Speaking to people in the villages of Tipling, Sertung and Lapa reveals just how important Himalayan HealthCare’s work has been.

A young woman named Melina, who is currently receiving a scholarship from Himalayan HealthCare, told us her story:

“I feel fortunate because I got this chance from Himalayan HealthCare. Otherwise my family wouldn’t be able to send me to school. My ambition is to take a higher level of science and become a doctor… If I cannot become a doctor, I will become a teacher. I will give health information in the villages and increase consciousness of health… I don't want other families to be sick like mine."

We are grateful for donors like you who have sustained our work over the past 25 years and hopeful that many of you, if you can, will help us to continue providing hope to people like Melina long into the future.

Every amount, no matter how small, makes a life-long difference in the lives of the people we serve.

We thank you for your continued support. 

Sincerely,
Christina