Kathmandu, October 28
The health sector has been put on high alert in view of the risk of heavy rain and the disasters it could trigger, including floods, landslides and inundation.
The alert follows the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology’s forecast of moderate to heavy rain and snowfall, accompanied by thunder and windstorms, in various parts of the country from October 29 to 31.
In this regard, the Health Emergency and Disaster Management Unit has written to the Provincial Health Emergency Operation Centres in all seven provinces, asking them to keep essential health services and response capacity ready.
The letter, sent by the unit’s chief, Dr Hemanta Chandra Ojha, asks each province to designate one emergency focal person reachable 24 hours a day, and to provide the person’s contact details to the unit and make them public.
It also asks the centres to coordinate with the relevant hub and satellite hospital networks and keep the necessary health workforce, including emergency medical teams (EMTs), on standby.
The centres have further been asked to coordinate with health sector partner agencies and update details of available personnel, medicines, medical supplies, equipment, ambulances and other resources.
The letter states that, to provide timely health services to the injured and affected citizens during disasters, provinces must coordinate continuously with their ambulance dispatch centres to ensure smooth, swift and effective mobilisation of ambulance services.
The unit has also asked the centres in all provinces to send details of health-related incidents and situations every day, through either “zero reporting” or “incident reporting.”
