One year of neurosurgery in the eastern region of Nepal.
BACKGROUND
This article briefly discusses about the present status, future strategies, and perspectives of neurosurgery in the eastern region of Nepal.


METHODS
B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Dharan, Nepal, is the only tertiary referral center responsible for patient care as well as training of postgraduate students and paramedical staff including health care workers in the eastern region of Nepal. We analyzed the data from January 2006 to January 2007 regarding patient care and their outcomes. At the same time, we also evaluated our limitations regarding resources and their impact on patient care. Strategies are suggested to overcome the barriers to establish effective neurosurgical centers in developing countries.


RESULTS
At present in the BPKIHS, neurosurgical facilities are being provided as a specialty unit in the department of surgery. From January 2006 to January 2007, a total 1120 patients were treated for different neurological and neurosurgical conditions. At present, there are 8 beds allotted to neurosurgical services in the general surgery ward. In addition, there are 8 ICU beds catering to the needs, including neurosurgery, of the hospital. No vascular, epilepsy surgery or functional neurosurgery has been performed due to lack of resources. The only imaging facility for neurosurgery that is available in the hospital is CT scan.


CONCLUSIONS
The study concludes that in a developing country, the neurosurgical unit can be structured in a manner that will fulfill most of the objectives required for better clinical outcome. This structured program may also benefit substantially in training health professionals as well.
Agrawal
Amit
A
Department of Surgery, B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Dharan, Nepal. dramitagrawal@gmail.com
Kumar
Anand
A
Agrawal
Chandra Shekhar
CS
Pratap
Akshay
A
D003422:Critical Care / Q000458:organization & administration; D019049:Developed Countries; D006276:Health Facility Size; D006757:Hospital Units / Q000458:organization & administration; D006801:Humans; D020380:Needs Assessment; D009390:Nepal; D009493:Neurosurgery / Q000193:education / Q000458:organization & administration*; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data