KATHMANDU, March 31: CEPHED, a non-profit organization based in Nepal, organized a dissemination workshop on Compliance Monitoring of Mercury-free Healthcare Services and Mercury-free Dentistry in Kathmandu on Thursday.
The workshop was supported by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Health and Population (MOHP) of Nepal. A total of 70 representatives from different healthcare sectors attended the workshop.
A study report launched during the workshop revealed that 93% of General Health Care Facilities and 94% of Dental Healthcare Facilities had stopped using mercury-based equipment. However, Medical colleges under KU and TU are still found to be using mercury dental amalgam for their academic and practical classes.
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Director General of the Department of Health Services (DoHS) Dr Deependra Raman Singh highlighted the nexus between climate change, chemical, and environmental pollution and linked these issues with intragenerational equity and justice.
The workshop highlighted the urgent need for universities to improve dental curriculums, ensure swift ratification of the Minamata Convention on Mercury and address the most complex and least addressed issues of healthcare waste management including mercury waste, chemical safety, and environmental health.
In her concluding remarks of the workshop, Chief of the Health Coordination Division of the Ministry of Health and Population (MOHP) Yeshoda Aryal closed the workshop by highlighting the need to increase all efforts to achieve 100% mercury-free healthcare services and mercury-free dentistry, and play a leadership role in these endeavors.
