COVID-19 Communication Team

COVID-19 Communication Team
Location: Kirtan Chowk, Baluwatar, Kathmandu
Institution: America Nepal Medical Foundation – Nepal
Project: MOHP [Ministry of Health and Population] has a team of people with call center, but they are busy with helping the patients in isolation and quarantine wards. Previous experience has shown that hospitals do not usually give accurate data and do not give it on time. What is required is to request data from the focal person of the hospitals so that patients can be sent to the right place as early as possible. The first wave had shown that we were very ill prepared for finding empty beds for patients and some had to roam around in ambulances as beds were difficult to find in time.

Thus, MOHP has requested for 4 medical officers to work in HEOC [Health Emergency Operation Center] under HEDMU [Health Emergency and Disaster Management Unit] Chief for collecting data from hospitals in Nepal.

The team will:

  • Collect data from hospitals for COVID-19:
    • Beds
    • ICU [intensive care Unit]
    • HDU [High Dependency Unit]
    • Oxygen availability
    • Other urgent data if required
  • The data will be taken twice daily from hospitals treating COVID-19 (private and public) of empty ICU, HDU and COVID-19 beds
  • If the patients increase dramatically and finding empty beds become more diffiult, the data can be sought 4 hourly
  • The data will be given to HEDMU for analysis and implementation
  • The data will be shared with Nepal Ambulance Service for easy transfer of patients to hospitals
  • If patients still increase, then the HEOC will act as command center and coordinate transfer of patients, from one hospital to another, isolation/quarantine centers to hospitals in case the patients become serious.
  • All this will be coordinated from HEDMU

Nepal's COVID-19 second wave has started. Although expected, people including the government has become complacent when the cases dropped to two figures. Unfortunately, with the dramatic rise of cases in India, the cases started to double and most of the COVID-19 wards (those that were left after most of the hospitals dismantled the COVID-19 wards) have become full. This time, more young patients are hospitalized and are admitted in ICU.

Nepal still has some time before we may be swamped by the cases like in India. Now is the time to assess the resources, e.g. Oxygen, human resources, number of ICU/HDU beds, etc. and start filling the gaps as required. The most important issue in disasters is the data so that we can coordinate the resources for better outcome.

Institution: America Nepal Medical Foundation – Nepal
Location: Kirtan Chowk, Baluwatar, Kathmandu
Contact: Bikrant Narsingh Rana, Project Coordinator
Organization: America Nepal Medical Foundation – Nepal (ANMF/Nepal) is ANMF/USA's sister organization in Nepal. Although there is no legal connection between the two (beyond memoranda of understanding) they coordinate closely.

America Nepal Medical Foundation-Nepal (ANMF-Nepal) is an organization which consists of a group of reputed doctors and who volunteers in order to strengthen the health care delivery services of Nepal. The board members of ANMF/Nepal are working at different health care systems at National Level and they volunteer in this organization. The ANMF/Nepal implements the projects very efficiently with very less overhead cost. Mainly ANMF/Nepal donates the funds directly to other implementing partners (which are mainly government institutions).

Organization Mission Statement

  • To strengthen the health care delivery services of Nepal
  • To provide emergency help during the disaster
  • To train the local health care manpower through observership and training programs
  • To assist and coordinate with Ministry of Health and Population, Nepal for enhancing the aim of "Health for ALL"
Title: COVID-19 Communication Team in HEOC
ID: 21ANMF002
Type: Public Health
Proposed: 23 April 2021
Approved: 28 April 2021 
Completed: 6 March 2022 
Grant: $5,667
Funded: $5,667
Nepal Manager: Bikrant Narsingh Rana
USA Manager: Dixa Dhital 
Details: MOHP [Ministry of Health and Population] has a team of people with call center, but they are busy with helping the patients in isolation and quarantine wards. Previous experience has shown that hospitals do not usually give accurate data and do not give it on time. What is required is to request data from the focal person of the hospitals so that patients can be sent to the right place as early as possible. The first wave had shown that we were very ill prepared for finding empty beds for patients and some had to roam around in ambulances as beds were difficult to find in time. Thus, MOHP has requested for 4 medical officers to work in HEOC [Health Emergency Operation Center] under HEDMU [Health Emergency and Disaster Management Unit] Chief for collecting data from hospitals in Nepal.
COVID-19 Communication Team
 
6 Mar 22  Project closed by the ANMF/USA Board of Directors.
24 Oct 21  ANMF/Nepal reports project is completed.
1 Aug 21  Final Report received from ANMF/Nepal.
21 Jun 21  Video received from ANMF/Nepal.
10 Jun 21  Call Data from ANMF/Nepal.
3 May 21  $5,667 transferred to ANMF/Nepal.
11 May 21  Communication received from ANMF/Nepal.
3 May 21  Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed.
3 May 21  Social Welfare Council (SWC) Approval
29 Apr 21  Fund Assurance Notice sent to ANMF/Nepal.
28 Apr 21  Project approved by ANMF/USA Board of Directors.

The Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP), Nepal has asked ANMF to help with data collection for available resources in terms of real time information on hospital/ICU beds from the hospitals in Nepal. MoHP has requested 4 medical officers to work in Health Emergency Operation Center (HEOC) under Health Emergency and Disaster Management Unit Chief (HEDMU) for collecting these data.

This team will collect data from hospitals regarding covid 19 beds, ICU, oxygen availability and other urgent data.

In the current system, MoHP has an online health management information system, where health systems and hospitals have to update this information on a daily basis. However, this is not happening daily and hospitals only update these data at the end of the month each month.

ANMF is planning to hire medical officers for this project, upon request of MoHP, to collect data so that when ambulances and the general public call MoHP, this information will be readilyavailable.

Each hospital/health system has a designated "focal person", who are required to give this information to the MoHP.

Medical officers for this project calling from the MoHP office would have the authority to be able to collect this information.

The duration of this project would be 3 months (May-Aug 2021), with possible request for an extension.

The ANMF Project Committee (PC) discussed this and agreed that this is a very important project which could help the general public tremendously to find hospital/ICU beds when someone is in a dire situation and scrambling to find a much needed bed.

PC recommended that the condition for approval of the project should be MoHP ensuring effective dissemination of this data.

25 Apr 21  Project approved by ANMF/USA Projects Committee with a condition that Ministry of Health and Population will ensure effective display of the data that is being collected.
23 Apr 21  Declaration from Health Emergency and Disaster Management Unit (HEDMU) / Health Emergency Operation Center (HEOC).
23 Apr 21  Proposal and Budget received from ANMF/Nepal.
23 Apr 21  Application received from ANMF/Nepal.
COVID-19 Communication Team
 
1 Aug 21  Final Report
10 Jun 21  Call Data
11 May 21  Communication from ANMF/Nepal.
3 May 21  Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
3 May 21  Social Welfare Council (SWC) Approval
29 Apr 21  Fund Assurance Notice
23 Apr 21  HEOC Declaration
23 Apr 21  Proposal and Budget
23 Apr 21  Application
COVID-19 Communication Team
 
28 July 2021 – ANMF Fights Covid
 
21 June 2021 – Communication Center