HAT - Humanitarian Aid Trust Nepal

INF New Zealand Sponsored Leprosy Screening Camp

The Shining Hospital INF Surkhet (SHIS) team has recently successfully conducted a leprosy screening camp in Humla, one of Nepal’s most remote and least accessible districts. This camp was paid for through INF New Zealand supporters. The initiative marked an important step toward early detection, prevention, and management of leprosy in areas where healthcare access remains extremely limited

The leprosy screen­ing camp was orga­nized in Sarkeghat Munic­i­pal­ity, cov­er­ing two health posts located in dif­fer­ent wards. A total of 283 indi­vid­u­als were screened for leprosy and other skin-related con­di­tions. Despite the chal­leng­ing terrain and limited infra­struc­ture, the SHIS team, in close coor­di­na­tion with local health facil­i­ties and local gov­ern­ment ensured that the camp ran effi­ciently and reached those most in need.

During the screen­ing, four new cases of leprosy were iden­ti­fied and recorded for follow-up treat­ment and coun­sel­ing. The team also reviewed exist­ing leprosy cases within the com­mu­nity, ensur­ing that ongoing treat­ments were on track and effec­tive. Fur­ther­more, two patients requir­ing recon­struc­tive surgery were referred to Green Pas­tures Hos­pi­tal (GPH).

In addi­tion to direct case detec­tion, the team carried out active contact exam­i­na­tions for both new and pre­vi­ously diag­nosed leprosy cases. This proac­tive approach plays a vital role in pre­vent­ing the spread of infec­tion within fam­i­lies and com­mu­ni­ties, while also raising aware­ness about the impor­tance of early diag­no­sis and con­sis­tent treatment.

Beyond leprosy, the camp also served as an oppor­tu­nity to address other common der­ma­to­log­i­cal con­di­tions found in the area. The most fre­quently diag­nosed con­di­tions included urticaria, eczema, and scabies, reflect­ing the wide­spread need for der­ma­to­log­i­cal ser­vices and public health edu­ca­tion in rural areas.

The suc­cess­ful com­ple­tion of this camp high­lights how impor­tant it is to reach mar­gin­al­ized and remote com­mu­ni­ties like those in Humla. Through such out­reach efforts, the team not only pro­vides essen­tial medical ser­vices but also strength­ens local capac­ity and com­mu­nity aware­ness about skin health and leprosy prevention.

Par­tic­i­pants expressed their sat­is­fac­tion with the camp’s activ­i­ties and appre­ci­ated the efforts made by the SHIS team. Female Com­mu­nity Health Vol­un­teers (FCHVs) and mothers’ group members shared that the ori­en­ta­tion ses­sions had increased their under­stand­ing of leprosy its causes, symp­toms, and treat­ment. They also expressed their com­mit­ment to actively dis­sem­i­nate this knowl­edge within their com­mu­ni­ties, helping to reduce stigma and encour­age early report­ing of sus­pected cases.

To further strengthen com­mu­nity engage­ment, the team dis­trib­uted infor­ma­tional chase cards designed to support con­tin­ued aware­ness and edu­ca­tion efforts at the local level. Health workers and munic­i­pal rep­re­sen­ta­tives also appre­ci­ated the ini­tia­tive, acknowl­edg­ing its rel­e­vance to the needs of the com­mu­nity. They expressed will­ing­ness to col­lab­o­rate in future activ­i­ties, ensur­ing sus­tained efforts against leprosy and related health challenges.

Adding to the impact, a local news channel covered the com­ple­tion of the camp, bring­ing broader vis­i­bil­ity to the ini­tia­tive and helping to raise public aware­ness and par­tic­i­pa­tion across the district.

Due to the impact and impor­tance of this initial camp INF New Zealand has com­mit­ted to spon­sor­ing another camp in 2026. If you are inter­ested in sup­port­ing another camp in 2026 then click here:

https://www.hatnepal.co.nz/donations/leprosy-screening-camp/