Nepal: Our work during COVID-19

Senior woman washing hands from water faucet, in Nepal
Written by Ashley Anderson, published on April 16, 2020 Give the Gift of Sight

Updates from our country manager Yashwant Sinha

As part of our emergency response in Nepal:

  • 29 community health workers were trained
  • 1,608 hygiene kits were distributed
  • 7,256 individuals received health education
  • 1,597 health education materials were distributed
  • 6 hand washing vessels were distributed

May 25, 2020

Our total impact to date as of May 25th, 2020 

  • 1,608 hygiene kits have been distributed to vulnerable and marginalized families.
  • 6 hand washing vessels have been distributed to strategic locations.
  • 7,256 individuals have been reached through health education.
  • 29 community health workers have been trained on COVID-19 detection and prevention measures.

May 15, 2020

Updates from the week ending May 15th, 2020 

  • 387 Operation Eyesight hygiene kits including soap, bleach, a COVID-19 information brochure, masks and hand sanitizer were distributed this week. This brings the total up to 1,425 kits distributed.
  • 1,871 individuals received health education about the prevention and detection of COVID-19. This brings the total to 6,582 individuals who have received COVID-19 health education.
  • 300 individuals have received health education, bringing the total up to 881 individuals.
Community health workers conduct a COVID-19 health education session

May 8, 2020

Updates from the week ending May 8th, 2020 

  • 505 Operation Eyesight hygiene kits including soap, bleach, a COVID-19 information brochure, masks and hand sanitizer were distributed this week. This brings the total up to 1,038 kits distributed.
  • 2,154 individuals received health education about the prevention and detection of COVID-19. This brings the total to 4,711 individuals who have received COVID-19 health education.

May 1, 2020

Updates from the week ending May 1st, 2020 

  • 124 hygiene kits have been distributed to marginalized and vulnerable families.
  • 581 individuals have received health education about COVID-19 awareness and prevention measures.
  • 29 project staff have been trained to respond to COVID-19.
  • All vision technicians have been trained on disinfection guidelines and COVID-19 safety protocols.
A community health worker distributes a hygiene kit
An Operation Eyesight hygiene kit is given to a family in Nepal

April 24, 2020

Updates from the week ending April 24th, 2020 

  • We have received information, education and communication materials from the Ministry of Health and will be printing them for distribution.
  • We have procured protective equipment for our project team and community health workers.
  • Training courses for community health workers is scheduled to begin next week.
  • We have trained Vision Technicians on disinfecting guidelines and protocols for our Vision Centres.

April 17, 2020

Updates from the week ending April 17th, 2020 

  • All our implementation partners attended an online orientation session about our COVID-19 response.
  • We began training community health workers on COVID-19 awareness, prevention and control measures. One of our partner hospitals has completed this training and we expect the second to complete it next week.
  • We have started procuring materials for hygiene kits.
  • We have started identifying marginalized households, including female-headed homes and persons with disabilities to receive hygiene kits.
  • Printing is not considered an essential service. However, partner hospitals are liaising with district health departments to print information, education and communication materials.

April 10, 2020

Gatherings of more than 25 people have been prohibited. All public transport including train/ air and bus services have been suspended during the lockdown period. Schools, colleges, cinema halls, gyms, clubs, swimming pools and museums are closed until April 30. The capital city of Kathmandu is on lockdown until the 27 of April, meaning people are only able to leave their places of residence for essential work/supplies.

Our focus for Nepal is to provide training for community health workers so that they can educate their communities about COVID-19. This training will include topics such as detection of symptoms, the importance and proper techniques for hand washing, and what to do if you or a family member starts displaying signs of COVID-19. By mid-May, we intend to have 29 community health workers (CHWs) and project staff trained to address COVID-19.

Our CHWs will distribute COVID-19 education materials to help stop the spread of COVID-19. By mid-May, we hope to have 9,000 people educated on COVID-19 prevention and preparedness. Additionally, we plan to hand out sanitation kits containing hand sanitizers and disposable masks and gloves to marginalized families. Our goal is to distribute 1,500 of these kits by mid-May.

Health education and information materials will be available at all six of our vision centers. We are also installing proper hand washing stations outside of all our vision centers to promote proper hygiene practices.

To ensure the safety of our staff and our community health workers, we are working to procure safety materials such as disposable masks, gloves and hand sanitizers. All our vision centers are complying with Operation Eyesight’s increased sanitation measures.

Learn more about our response to COVID-19 and how you can help here.