Dr. Chunmila & Dr. Asha

Dr Asha Jha & Dr. Chunmila Maharjan
Obstetrician / Gynecologists
We “are very grateful to work with you in Ilam Camp.  It was a wonderful experience working with you both in surgical and clinical cases.  You and your whole team were very helpful.”  We were “Grateful to work with you in surgery.  We learned lots of new techniques in Surgery.  You also gave us a chance to do Surgery Independently which is a great achievement.  As a whole, Ilam camp was full of new achievements for us.”

Dr. Ernesto Jones
Family physician from the UK
“I had the pleasure of working with Worldwide Healing Hands whilst placed at Ilam Community Hospital; part of my Out Of Programme Experience as a GP trainee.  I thought they did a fantastic job of providing free gynecological healthcare to a community much in need.  The experience I gained as a result made my placement even more valuable.  Their work included operations, cervical screening and patient education.  I found the staff very friendly and committed to their mission, often working in challenging conditions with very few resources and long hours.  I also had the great pleasure of meeting the leaders of the team and experiencing the valuable teaching that they provided both to doctors and midwives.  Working with the team was an unforgettable pleasurable experience and would love to work with them again.”

Dr. Saroj Subba
Medical Officer
Dr. Subba joined us in 2012 and again on our 2013 mission in Ilam.  He mentioned that he delayed leaving for his pediatric residency because he had such a good experience with us.  Afterwards he wrote that he “wanted to thank you for all the valuable lessons you gave me while you were here.”

Sunil Kumar
Anesthetist
Sunil works alone in a rural hospital providing anesthesia for all types of surgeries.  He was very appreciative of the knowledge and skills he gained from Dr. Rafal Wyskowski as they worked side by side during all the surgeries we performed in Ilam, Nepal

Milan Gurung
Acting Hospital Administrator
Milan has a wealth of experience in project management and hospital administration.  He was instrumental in 2012 and 2013 in making sure that everything ran smoothly throughout the entire mission.  He made sure that we had everything we needed to carry out our work.  He acted as translator, patient coordinator, patient transporter and even floor moper when necessary. His knowledge and assistance were invaluable.  He is currently Chief Executive Officer at Sumeru Hospital

Lisa Chand Thkuri, RN
Acting Hospital Administrator
Lisa worked with us in 2012 and 2013 as the operating room manager.  She worked tirelessly as translator, scrub technician and circulating nurse, performing whatever task was necessary to assure that the surgeries went smoothly.

Paula R. Dhanda, MD
Obstetrician & Gynecologist
Team Leader
“I am excited to be returning to Nepal to work with Himalayan Healthcare and continue the work that we started in 2012.”    Dr. Dhanda has led several medical missions in the past 10 years and has received numerous awards for alleviating the suffering and promoting wellness.

Nancy Jane Reynolds, MD
Obstetrician & Gynecologist
“I love to travel and work with different cultures; providing surgical and medical care.”  Dr. Reynolds traveled to Nepal in the early 1980s and this inspired her to volunteer to return with this mission.

Rafal Jan Wyskowski, MD
Anesthesiologist
“I love being a doctor.”  This is Dr. Wyskowski’s first medical mission; he loves his profession and offered his skills in that spirit.

Margaret Jennifer Burns, RN
“I have wanted to work on a medical mission and now that I have retired, this is the perfect time.”  Jennifer’s experience for the past 25 years has been as an OB/GYN nurse.

Lonnie Marie Hlusko, Registeded Ultrasoun Technician
“I am dedicated to women’s healthcare in the developing world.”  Lonnie founded the organization Hands for Humanity in 2000 to educate nurses and hospital staff in remote rural settings such as Nepal on healthcare and the use of ultrasound as a tool to diagnose problems in pregnancy.  Since its founding, Lonnie has traveled on numerous medical missions.

Lynn Arnold, Licensed Practicing Midwife
Lynn feels she has “a unique ability to teach at a simplistic level” – grasp the complex and translate so everyone can understand. Lynn has been working in women’s health since 1975.  She founded and operated a free standing birth center from 1985 to 2011 serving more that 13,000 Hispanic women.  She also wrote and taught a state approved midwifery educational program to over 800 students around the world.  This will be her second mission to Nepal with Worldwide Healing Hands.

Flora Shepherd Krasnovsky, Epidemiologist
Flora volunteered to “gather information on this mission for training.”  Her skills are in research, counseling, training, data collection and analysis.

Nathan DeHart, Professional Photographer
“I want to provide inspiring professional photography for WHH to use for promotion and education.”  Nathan has traveled as a photographer to South East Asia and India in the recent past.

Nathan Powers, Student
Nathan volunteered for this mission “to have an opportunity to learn about the medical field while giving to the less fortunate and learn about the world I live in>”  Nathan has traveled to Ghana in the summer of 2011 to work with children.

Watch this heartfelt video.

Nepal’s Salyan District maternity ward
Photo: Phuong Tran/IRIN

KATHMANDU, 18 March 2013 (IRIN) – While health experts applaud Nepal’s declining maternal mortality ratio (MMR) in recent years, they say this gain is unsustainable if the country does not address its lack of qualified health staff, especially midwives, to keep women in childbirth alive.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97667/Analysis-Nepal-s-maternal-mortality-decline-paradox

Kathie made a very generous donation to Worldwide Healing Hands to help women all over the world. We thank her for believing in our cause and for being part of our team. We cannot help women and children without the support and generosity of people like Kathie. This donation will change the lives of many women forever.

A small number of dedicated staffers along with volunteers sort all of this donated materials and it’s available for purchase at a very modest cost to individuals and organizations that serve the medical needs of many patients who otherwise would not get the necessary care that we take for granted.

All the supplies were carefully labeled and placed on shelves for practitioners to check through and pick up what they thought was necessary. There was a great selection of items used in surgery, general and specialty medicine, pediatrics and useful in the nursing care of these patients. Considering the time needed to sort and label each item, the care of the staff and volunteers was clearly apparent. The compassion and commitment to reuse everything possible and waste nothing was palpable in the air.

We were met by Shannon Kuehnel, Programs Associate for MedShare who very kindly took as to the enormous sorting room and assisted us in obtaining some items that were not in plain view. Dr. Paula knew what she would need to take to Nepal in May based on her experience last fall. Many of the items she needed were available and the items were boxed up and now she’s going have many surgical-medical supplies that she will need as she returns to continue to give the very necessary surgical care and the obstetrical support to the midwives that by extension help women in remote areas. It was a very moving experience for me and knowing that MedShare and the donors are there to serve those in need, restores our faith in society.

by Perla Lovejoy, RN

We are planning to return to Nepal in May, 2013 to take care of many of the women who were “left behind” and to do some more midwife training. These donations brought us closer to accomplishing our goal. If you missed the talk, I will be doing another presentation in March, 2013. Sign up here to receive more information about our progress.

George Woods MD, Paula Dhanda MD, Chris Hansom RN, Jasmin Clarke, Jesse Seaver, Ben Horton

Imagine the thrill of looking out of the plane window on the way to Ilam, to see the Himalayas and Mount Everest. We landed in the town of Bhadrapur and started on our 3 hour road trip to the village of Ilam. The roads were very rough, full of ruts and rocks. Dotted here and there with farm animals, tractors and small motorbikes. On reaching Ilam we were greeted by the local population and given silk scarfs and greeted with “Namaste”.

The small Himalayan Healthcare Hospital was clean and set in a strikingly beautiful area. The weather was warm for which we were grateful as we were assigned to sleeping quarters in tents. I was grateful for the opportunity to teach diabetes education to the local population and to go into the village and meet with the people.

After a week or more, (one tends to lose track of time) we set out to the quaint little village of Naya Bazaar. I was reminded of the village in “Fiddler on the Roof” and quipped about where is Tevya and his milk wagon. Sure enough there was a milk train of 2 horses with milk cans on either side. We spent 2 days in Naya Bazaar and saw many patients.

On the second day, we were scheduled to go back to Ilam. My friend Patti, Dharma, (hospital administrator) and I decided to walk the 6 miles down to the river rather than to ride the rough roads. We thought we would get to the river before dark, but we didn’t. The pick-up vehicle came just as it was getting too dark to see. I don’t remember exactly what happened, I just remember stepping back and falling down a cliff to a ledge about 10 feet down.

My right arm was broken. My hero for the moment was Ben, the photographer who happened to be an EMT. He was down in a few seconds, checked me out for further injury and fashioned a sling from a scarf he was wearing. I wore that sling for 2 days. Coming across the river in the dark with 4 people crowded in the front seat, the driver turned into the water a bit before the crossing and we were in the water heading down. I thought I was going to die there in that cold water, with a broken arm. Somehow that driver was able to get the vehicle in reverse and slowly backed out and got to the right crossing place.

On getting back to Ilam, I was given some pain meds and spent the night in the hospital. The next day I was supposed to go back the 3 hour trip to catch a plane to Katmandu. But, there was some political unrest with the Maoists and the roads to the airport were closed. Thanks to Dr. Paula Dhanda a helicopter was dispatched to take me to Katmandu (500 miles). On arrival of the helicopter at the cricket field, most of the community was out to see the action. When we got on and were taking off the villagers waved goodbye.

Back in Katmandu, I met with a surgeon and he explained what he would do if I elected to have surgery there. The next day, I was operated on and slept most of the day. The hospital was doing some construction work and there were very few patients on the floor where I was. I had 24 hour private duty nursing who waited on me hand and foot. Literally, when I wanted to get out of bed, the nurse was right there with the slippers that are mandatory. Your bare feet must not touch the floor. One night when I got up by myself and was in the bathroom before the nurse got there, she was horrified, “oh god, oh my god” she exclaimed as she quickly got the slippers on my feet. The care was very good, but I was surprised at the lack of patient rights. I was not having any pain and tried to refuse pain meds. Not permitted. The doctor said I must have them. I asked what the pills were for that I was taking. They didn’t know, but I must take them, I could not refuse. But they were so sweet and kind, I took them.

After 4 days in the hospital and 1 night in the hotel, I boarded the plane and headed for the 2 day trip back to USA. Thanks to my traveling companion, Dr. George, I was able to get business or first class for most of the trip. Back in San Francisco, I nearly kissed the ground, but I will go again. (If my kids will let me, they say I am grounded to the US for a while)

by Chris Hansom, RN

I feel extremely fortunate to be part of Worldwide Healing Hands (WHH). The medical professionals, board members, and volunteers are motivated, dynamic, and passionate and our numbers continue to grow.

Deprived communities around the globe continuously find themselves in perilous conditions resulting from health disparities, economical decline, natural disasters or political dissension. WHH partners with local medical organizations to provide free surgical and medical care to those in need. In 2012, our international team of medical volunteers joined forces with Himalayan Healthcare to provide care in Nepal to over 1,500 women during the 2-week mission. In addition to this, we provided advanced training and equipment to 10 midwives. The local hospital staff received training during our team-performed surgeries.

These missions are a microscopic reflection of the actual needs of our underdeveloped global community as there is an overwhelming demand for basic and emergency medical services worldwide. Grim health conditions do not have a history of improving rapidly; patients are rarely in a position to help themselves. In many cases there is a lack of sufficient support from government agencies. This leaves organizations like WHH as an imperative component of medical servicing and training to underprivileged regions. When we train a professional, the benefits of our work continue long after we return home.

Our medical volunteers are our most valuable resource; they are the backbone of our organization. They use their vacation time away from their families and manage to work in challenging and sometimes unsafe conditions to take part in our missions. With very little financial support, the allocation of every dollar is of crucial importance to WHH and thus I am grateful that our mission volunteers finance their own travel expenses. This enables WHH to purchase more medical supplies and equipment for the mission. The medical volunteers’ passion and dedication knows no bounds and deserves our deep gratitude. They inspire us to broaden our commitment to reach and help more people.

We are thankful for all the support we’ve received throughout this year. I want to thank you for investing in in WHH’s commitment to helping those in need through medical missions. I am very thankful for your generous donations and look forward to your ongoing support to continue with this much needed and immensely gratifying journey.

We have planned our first mission in 2013 to return to Nepal. In addition we are in the midst of planning our second mission later in the year.
Please consider including Worldwide Healing Hands in your end-of-year giving to support our work in 2013.

Thank you so much,Paula, and Happy New Year.

Sincerely,
Paula R. Dhanda, M.D.

Our tents were pitched and ready for occupancy upon our arrival, situated on level ground (a premium in the hill country of Ilam) adjacent to the hospital. A warm and scrumptious dinner was served (all meals were top notch) by Bill (chef and musician). Hot water bottles dispensed to throw in our sleeping bags. What an idea! A good nights sleep was had. Coffee served at 0630, in our tents. Wow! Seeing the crowd waiting early on the first morning to be seen drained all apprehension over having any patients to see.

On day five our team loaded up three four-wheel drive Land Rovers and traveled 12 miles down into the valley, crossing a river over rocks, with water seeping across the floorboard. and up the mountainside (aprox. 2 hours) to the neighboring town of Naya Bazaar (New Bazaar). During the first clinic word came that the surgery schedule was full. I was devastated. This left me feeling totally impotent. Women pleading with their looks (eyes), “please, make space for me.” My examinations during that one clinic revealed seven more complete prolapses.

That evening we drank from old Tongbas the city fathers provided. We danced and sang around a bonfire to Nepali drumming. This, in a small way soothed the heartache of surgical time and thoughts of not doing enough. Two days after returning to Ilam, the same patients walked the days-worth distance from Naya Bazaar to ask one more time, “are you sure there is no more surgical time?”

All told, in six days in the operating room we performed 36 surgeries, 33 of which were vaginal hysterectomies and pelvic reconstruction – naya vagina.

We are grateful and honored that Dr. Paula Dhanda and her organization Worldwide Healing Hands invited us to participate. Himalayan Healthcare is outstanding. Their motto is; health care is for people, not for profit. The administrative care by Anil Parajuli, Milan Gurung, Dharma Gautam and Liza Chand Thakur was second to none. The operating turn over could not be matched, anywhere. Those working alongside us were so supportive. All was superb. And the team. All in our hearts, forever.

Bryan Henry, MD & Patti Henry, RN