A Report about Covid-19 and Medical Service of the Solukhumbu/Everest Region

Report from Dr. Kami Temba Sherpa.

Khunde Hospital, 13 May 2021.

Second wave Covid-19 in the Everest region:

After losing two consecutive trekking/mountaineering seasons, the only income sources in the Khumbu region, the local Sherpas up here felt a great sense of relief to get some employment opportunity with mountaineering expeditions on Everest and other mountains in spring 2021. Ironically, the second wave of Covid-19 emerged in the country and cases increased exponentially in Kathmandu around at the same time when the expedition groups were just about to leave for the mountains.  The virus travelled with them and initially the lodges and hotels on main trekking route, then EBC got infected and later entered to the adjacent local communities. Strict Covid-19 measures in the addition to contact tracing, testing and quarantine were just impossible as hundreds of porters, guides and climbers have been coming in and out daily from the main route to EBC.  Hopefully, the measures will be maintained better once the mountaineering expeditions pulled out from the region.

Covid-19 Testing:

Virus testing with Rapid antigen test kit has been commenced at Kunde Hospital from the beginning of this month (May 2021) and it has been very helpful for us to confirm the diagnosis.   We have the best quality testing kit available in Nepal and 50 test kits were purchased with Covid-19 emergency relief fund provided by the American Himalayan Foundation.  The rapid antigen tests are recommended for only those with symptomatic patients and 11 out of 17 patients were tested positive to date.  The majority of the infected people are local people from all over Khumbu which indicates that there is a community transmission of the virus in Khumbu.

Khunde Hospital Covid-19 management plan:

Public Health measures to control the pandemic that we adopted in the community last year by Kunde Hospital have been continued this year. Face masks and hand sanitisers are distributed to every family members.  Oxygen concentrator machines, dozens of Pulse Oximeters and Thermometers are made available for publics in main community centres like schools, health clinics, monasteries and youth clubs.   Local youth volunteers and health workers are trained to handle those medical equipment and safety measures. 

Instructions for home isolation with strict Covid measures has been set up and patients are strongly encouraged to follow the instructions.  Mild to moderate cases are planned to manage adequately at their own home. Patients tested positive for Covid-19 and their family members are kept in strict home isolation with regular phone contact with Kunde hospital.  Their vitals are monitored on daily basis.

At present, three Covid patients are on domiciliary Oxygen.  Two of them are on recovery phase and one patient is on steroid (dexametheson) and oral antibiotic as she has developed pneumonia.  Given the limited resources that we have up here, any patients requiring ICU care and Ventilatory support have to be evacuated to Kathmandu. Hopefully this numbers remain small and given the current situation in Kathmandu it will be up to the family to decide.

Covid-19 vaccine:

Government of Nepal had roll out the vaccination against Covid-19 in early this year. AstraZeneca (covishield) vaccine donated by the government of India was given to all the frontline workers and people above 55 age.  Kunde hospital and the outreach clinics actively participated in this program, all the frontline workers were vaccinated with two doses and around 60 % of the local people above 55 age in the Khumbu region had received the first dose. The second doses are delayed due to the severe shortage of vaccines in India.