Sickle cell is killing many people; Tharu Communities are the targets

भिडियो हेर्न तलको बक्सभित्र किल्क गर्नुहोस

Chiranjeevee Pokhrel for DCnepal, Jan 29, 2016 - Sickle cell anemia is a genetic disorder related to blood. This disease is transmitted from parents to the children genetically. At the suffering of sickle cell, the red blood cells are changed to sickle shape and harder instead of being round and soft; which causes obstruction in blood circulation and several health problems are observed. According to the specialists, sickle cell is mostly found in Tharu communities.

According to the population census 2068, the population of Tharus in entire Nepal is 17,37,470. According to the record of World Health Organization (WHO), five percent out of the world population are the carrier of the sickle cell gene. Accordingly, annually, three lakh people get birth with the complexities of hemoglobin.

There is no treatment service of this disease in the most affected areas – Far Western Development Region due to lack of physicians. Moreover, due to lack of adequate knowledge; doctors used to prescribe medicines with the suspicion of some other diseases. Due to the prescription of wrong medicine, patients had even got death, as informed by Epidemiology and Disease Control Division Office Head Dr. Baburam Parajuli.

As the doctors and the medical professionals, due to lack of knowledge about the particular disease; we have planned to give awareness training about the disease. We have given the directions to the related hospitals and concerned health institutions for training all the medical professionals about the.” For the required trainings, Government has transferred the budget every year, as he said.