PHASE Worldwide have been empowering isolated communities in Nepal since 2005, supporting projects in health, education and livelihoods. Their name stands for Practical Help Achieving Self-Empowerment - and they’re bringing this to some of the most remote and rural communities in Nepal and the world. PHASE’s Director, Lyndsey, shares with us the impact of one of their health programmes…
PHASE has been working in Manbu, in the Gorkha district of Nepal for the last eight years. In the upper settlement of Manbu, the PHASE Health Post is the only medical resource available and without it, the community would have a long walk to reach other help, especially when heavily pregnant, ill, or injured.
When working alongside development and medical professionals, we can often forget to step back and intentionally question the impact that community healthcare is having. It can be easy to assume it’s doing good, because health care is good! However, we continue to dig deep into data and explore what the numbers tell us about Manbu Health Post’s achievements.
Here’s what PHASE delivers in Manbu each year:
over 2,500 health consultations
family planning advice to over 325 families
170 home visits, reaching about 1,600 people
child growth monitoring of 600 children under 5, plus identifying and treating malnourished children (15 last year)
antenatal services for around 50 pregnant women
professional and skilled birthing support for around 25 mothers
nutrition and health education workshops, attended by nearly 4,000 people
It’s clear we are reaching people, but I was also interested in the change over time. What have we managed to change in eight years?
One of the areas we monitor is attendance at antenatal clinics (ANC). If a mother is monitored more closely and is aware of the importance of looking after herself and the baby, they both benefit. We also want more babies to be delivered at a health post or hospital so that if there are problems, the mother is in a safe place.
It’s so encouraging to look at the numbers below.
Remember, every number is a woman. A woman whose trust in, and access to, healthcare has improved.
We’re also seeing an increase in families using family planning methods, from 106 to 285 in six years. More women are being empowered to make choices about their bodies and their families.
Recently the government have started construction of a health post building with the aim of continuing health services there. Once the building is completed, we will start the process of relocating our equipment and the staff that we’ve trained to a new area with no healthcare, in the knowledge that the people of Manbu now have provision. It is estimated this will take a couple of years, and we are committed to supporting a successful handover of the health post.
The difference this project has made in the community is tangible, and we are proud of everyone who has helped deliver such an important service over nearly a decade.
Find out more about PHASE Worldwide and what they're up to here.