On the 11th and 12th of April 2023, the 'Ninth National Summit of Health and Population Scientists in Nepal' held in Kathmandu provided excellent coverage of our research on the effects of federalism on Nepal's healthcare system. The annual conference is organized by the Nepal Health Research Council. During the plenary session, Prof. Sujan Marahatta, and Prof. Simon Rushton from the University of Sheffield presented their findings.
They jointly outlined the preliminary study findings. In the afternoon, our collaborator Dr. Jiban Karki (Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine) presented more detailed findings on ‘Human resource management at local level in Nepal’s federalised health system’ from the same study.
Throughout the entire day, we also showcased a poster presentation titled 'COVID-19 as a challenge to Nepal's newly-federalized health system: Capacities, responsibilities, and mindsets.' The poster provided a comprehensive analysis of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Nepal's recently federalized healthcare system. It highlighted the various challenges faced in terms of capacities, responsibilities, and mindsets within the system. The presentation aimed to shed light on the implications of the pandemic and stimulate discussions among the attendees regarding potential strategies and improvements to effectively address such challenges in the future.
All the dissemination activities mentioned earlier were part of the Nepal Federal Health System Project, which is a significant collaborative initiative. The project focuses on investigating the implications of Nepal's transition to a federal government structure in 2015 on the health system. Led by the University of Sheffield, the project is conducted in partnership with Bournemouth University, the University of Huddersfield, Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences (MMIHS), and PHASE Nepal. Spanning from 2020 to 2024, this joint endeavor aims to comprehensively examine and understand the consequences and challenges faced by the health system in Nepal due to the federalization process.