Himalayan Dental Mobile Camp 2020: Covid-19 Emergency
The project, carried out thanks to the funds of the Otto per Mille Valdese, includes two lines of intervention: in the first part, the project partners will deliver food and personal protective equipment (PPE) to families in conditions of socio-economic hardship due to the containment measures aimed at countering the health emergency. In the second part, on the other hand, mobile dental camps (free dental care and oral hygiene education) will be set up at schools in the Makwanpur district, south of Kathmandu.
Project Map
The context
Nepal is one of the poorest countries in Asia and is facing a health emergency that is bringing even the world’s most advanced economies to their knees. The data on the spread and contagion of Covid-19 are worrying and the national government has imposed, in alternating phases, generalized lockdowns and curfews.
These measures to contain the virus are putting the population of Kathmandu and its surroundings in economic difficulty. The conditions of widespread poverty seriously affect the health of the population, especially children. In fact, 41% of children under 5 suffer from malnutrition.
In addition, the provision of health and access to health services, despite the efforts made in recent decades by public health, are often precarious, especially in rural and more remote areas.
Activities
The intervention of Doctors for Peace fits into this context. The needs of the population in this moment of emergency lie in clear indications on how to reduce the contagion and economic support that allows us to overcome this phase of closure and curfew. For this reason, Doctors for Peace through the project partners:
– deliver food and personal protective equipment (PPE) to the most vulnerable groups affected by the containment measures in the city of Kathmandu and its surroundings;
– training and dissemination of good practices to limit contagion as well as correct use of PPE;
In the second part, on the other hand, mobile dental camps will be created to offer oral hygiene education as well as first-level interventions for pathologies such as tooth decay, periodontal diseases, gingivitis and periodontitis at schools in the Makwanpur district, south of Kathmandu.
