Looking Beyond The Doctors in Nepal
Amidst the second wave of corona virus, it’s all thanks to godly doctors and their daily passion for saving one’s life. Unforeseen wave of Covid-19 hit Nepal hard with its wave taking lives of many and raising the toll to staggering 35000+ in total. It has been a year dealing with it but these doctors don’t even slow down is a blessing to us. Nepal has always been lacking with cutting edge technology which turn down to all of us. It has been pretty fine till now but with the triple mutant getting it’s detection in India and Sri Lanka being affected with “airborne” strain; will Nepal hold off long? Are doctor’s alone sufficient to overcome this pandemic?
The point I am trying to show here is that, in the context of Nepal we need more of those medical professionals. No, I am not actually talking about doctor’s here but someone who aid them with satisfactory tools and state of the art practices. Being born and raised in Nepal, I am well known about how high scholars rush into IOM examination. Maybe now is the time we actually split things. Instead of just pursuing to MBBS, students should also focus on the other fields. “But are there better options?” you might be wondering, why not? Nursing, Public Health, Microbiology and yes even neurology. These are the great fields in biomedicine and human science.
Nursing is no wonder to us. They are the frontlines of administrating and evaluating treatment. The side of doctors are always there for their faithful service with little bit of advancement like being people–oriented rather than test-oriented, focus on communication and connections and the safe use of technology, nurses are no short from being the same level as we consider doctors to be. Next up on the list is Public Health. These are the guys who run into the village and share their experiences, conduct surveys and provide necessary knowledge to people all around the country.
Sadly in Nepal, I’ve witnessed lack of respect for this profession. When one of the students of BPH (Bachelor in Public Health) was conducting a survey, some of my classmates miserably mocked her behind the back saying she was into wrong career. The social studies’ “lack of awareness” was seen there. If only they have been aware of her importance, maybe she would have got better survey results!
Biotechnology is the future of biological medicine. A blooming career enriched with lots of research and prospects. In Nepal, such professions can be used for research and production as well. Things like genetic engineering can be done in Nepal .Or maybe a new mechanism of Artificial Heart; who knows?
Microbiology is a similar field. In the panic of the pandemic, microbiologist could lend some hands in the research resulting in positive way. Even in future, we could develop our own medicines rather than paying hefty sums for importing. Two of the great careers being left unnoticed are a shame to be honest.
As a final verdict, this is a message to high school grads and fresher out there who want to pursue medical field. You young brains should look out for something that you have interest in. Don’t rush into MBBS just because someone said that this career has money and respect. Find something you love and try making Nepal a better place in health facilities. With proper exposure in the varieties of field, there will be a time when we no longer have to complain about backwardness of Nepal’s health system.
