Return to Nepal; Team 23's Post-Pandemic Visit
NepalAbility was excited to reconnect with our colleagues in Nepal in the fall of 2022, following an almost 3-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic!
The focus once again was on developing neuro-rehabilitation and providing ongoing education with our Nepali healthcare. Team 23 was comprised of four individuals: James Bardy (OT)and Alex Bagley (PT) from Victoria BC, , Dr. Katie Cheliak (Physiatry Resident) from Hamilton, ON; and Dr. Nora Cullen, NepalAbility Chair and Physiatrist from Toronto.
The first week was spent at United Mission Hospital Tansen, greeting friends old and new in the hospital’s rehabilitation setting, while orienting to the change in leadership of the department since NepalAbility’slast visit. The team followed up on the remote synchronous learning that NepalAbility had delivered throughout the pandemic, as well as identified new education needs. In addition to one-on-one bedside teaching, the team provided group sessions on the following topics: Traumatic brain injury (Katie), treatment and classification of pressure sores (Nora) as well as proper positioning and transfer techniques (Alex and James). James and Alex also conducted a session for the rehabilitation team on how to support the development of telehealth interventions. Finally, the team conducted a home visit to review home based interventions in the community. Each intervention highlighted the need for multi-disciplinary rehabilitation and teamwork, while generating some excellent ideas for future teams to build upon.
The focus once again was on developing neuro-rehabilitation and providing ongoing education with our Nepali healthcare. Team 23 was comprised of four individuals: James Bardy (OT)and Alex Bagley (PT) from Victoria BC, , Dr. Katie Cheliak (Physiatry Resident) from Hamilton, ON; and Dr. Nora Cullen, NepalAbility Chair and Physiatrist from Toronto.
The first week was spent at United Mission Hospital Tansen, greeting friends old and new in the hospital’s rehabilitation setting, while orienting to the change in leadership of the department since NepalAbility’slast visit. The team followed up on the remote synchronous learning that NepalAbility had delivered throughout the pandemic, as well as identified new education needs. In addition to one-on-one bedside teaching, the team provided group sessions on the following topics: Traumatic brain injury (Katie), treatment and classification of pressure sores (Nora) as well as proper positioning and transfer techniques (Alex and James). James and Alex also conducted a session for the rehabilitation team on how to support the development of telehealth interventions. Finally, the team conducted a home visit to review home based interventions in the community. Each intervention highlighted the need for multi-disciplinary rehabilitation and teamwork, while generating some excellent ideas for future teams to build upon.
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The next week was spent at Green Pastures Hospital in Pokhara. The team connected with long time colleagues Dr. Josh Riggsbee and his wife Sarah Riggsbee, physician and speech-language pathologist respectively, as well as with new physical and occupational therapists in the rehabilitation department. The hospital itself continues to expand, with a palliative care building and services, as well as an additional space for treating children with developmental disabilities. Team 23 again collaborated on an individual basis with the physicians and occupational therapists, and provided group education sessions on cardiac rehabilitation and interpreting CT scans (Katie), telehealth practice (James and Alex) and returning to work with traumatic brain injuries (James). Nora also explored the possibility of NepalAbility funding community based rehabilitation visits for the therapy team.
Overall it was exciting and invigorating to connect and share clinical expertise once again, following the hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic. It was not long after this team’s return NepalAbility was sending Team 24 to follow-up with our Nepali partners, and returned in March 2023!
Overall it was exciting and invigorating to connect and share clinical expertise once again, following the hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic. It was not long after this team’s return NepalAbility was sending Team 24 to follow-up with our Nepali partners, and returned in March 2023!