Members of staff at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust have presented on their innovative work at an international meeting.
Jeremy Ward, Consultant Surgeon and Chairman of Health Exchange Nepal (HExN), Professor Satyan Rajbhandari, Consultant Physician and General Secretary of HExN, and Dr Martin Myers, Consultant Chemical Pathologist, were invited to attend a conference on the Britain – Nepal Medical and Health Co-operation at the Nepalese Embassy in London last month.
Mr Jeremy Ward spoke to an audience of around 100 people on the work of HExN since its establishment in 2008. HExN was set up by Jeremy Ward and Professor Satyan Rajbhandari at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals ten years ago.
Since that time the charity has set up and supported numerous health education projects in Nepal across a range of medical specialties including diabetes, care of new-borns, radiology, anaesthetics and laparoscopic (keyhole) surgery.
In 2015, after two devastating earthquakes in Nepal, the team set up a “No Socks Rocks” campaign to raise awareness of the earthquake appeal and to reach their fundraising target of £100,000. Supporters were invited to share photos of themselves without socks at work or taking part in their favourite activities, using the hashtag #NoSocksRocks to then challenge their friends. The campaign was supported by many people across the North West and beyond, raising nearly £200,000 for rescue and rebuilding work.
Speaking about the No Socks Rocks campaign, Professor Satyan Rajbhandari said: “We were so pleased with the generosity across the country to support this campaign. The work that we have been doing has made a real difference and we hope to continue this through HExN.”
The recent conference was held in London and was attended by the Deputy Prime Minister and Health Minister of Nepal, Mr Upendra Yadav, and was arranged by Dr Durga Subedi, the Nepalese Ambassador to the UK. Representatives of the Nepalese Doctors Association, Nepalese Nurses Association and Britain-Nepal Medical Trust also attended the conference.
Jeremy Ward said: “We are extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to present about our work. We are really pleased with the work that we have been doing as part of HExN and hope that this momentum will continue and that will continue to help these fantastic causes.”