Medical Personnel for Hospital

Okhaldhunga Community Hospital is a remote 50-bed mission hospital that was started in 1962. There are visa opportunities for the posts listed below-
OCH currently has two critical expat needs for general surgery and OBGYN. Other expatriate needs that have visa availability are- General Practitioner, orthopedic surgery, Internist, Anesthesiologist, Critical Care Specialist, Dental Surgeon, nursing specialist, diagnostic/ imaging director, medical superintendent, biomedical/ IT consultant, clinical coordinator/ social service advisor, rehabilitation specialist, expatriate coordinator, hospital services director, funding management advisor, grant management advisor, project director, engineer/ construction supervisor, tutorial teacher and maintenance advisor.
While working in the hospital, there is opportunity to minister to both patients and staff, as it is not required to be a Christian to be employed by the hospital (as a Nepali- All expats must be Christian), so a large number of staff believe in Hinduism, Buddhism and blends of these with local animism as well. There is a local church established in the area and therefore there are opportunities to work alongside the local church for community evangelism outside of hospital duties as well.

Other medical training opportunities are also available through WorldVenture’s BAM workers. Multiple areas of medical training, from low level community based/ lay person courses to specialty skill training for clinicians is possible.

REQUIREMENTS:
These opportunities are all based out of the hospital which is in a very remote and isolated area of Nepal. The terrain is in the foothill region of Mt Everest, meaning every movement requires that you either go up or down steep terrain at all times. The hospital is still developing and therefore the campus itself even requires a relatively strong level of physical fitness to move through it. There are currently no life amenities or amenities that allows for easy gathering of staff for the sake of community, therefore being resilient and creative in how you maintain physical and emotional health is needed. There is currently no school for expat children, so unless you are coming for that specific role, be prepared to homeschool your children. Despite there being some challenges, the hospital is actively working with other organizations to develop areas to gather for life events and to engage in physical and emotional health. When this area is developed, it will be an amazing space to gather in rich fellowship together. These visa opportunities all require a fairly high-level of experience to function autonomously due to the nature of the remote setting. For longer stays a vision trip is not required but would be helpful.

RESPONSIBILITIES:
Each visa provided by the hospital has its own set of responsibilities and these need to be taken seriously as a legitimate job within the hospital. Outside of the specific visa post’s job description, other ministry opportunities are available.

LANGUAGE NEEDS:
Learn on field

LANGUAGE USED:
Nepali

LIVING ENVIRONMENT:
The housing situation is clean but small. There is a small kitchen with a sitting area and bedroom(s) and the bathrooms are “squatty potties”. Some of the homes have areas that are common to others, as they have to pass through the hall to get to their living area. Water is not potable from the tap, electricity can be variable but usually expat homes have a battery system available, internet is decent (occasionally going on and off), washing clothes is often hired out as work for local women (done by hand) or if you are a long-term hospital staff, it is possible to purchase a machine from the capital city (Kathmandu) and have it shipped to Sobru. The kitchens are equip with gas stove tops and a refrigerator. If an oven is desired, it needs to be a self purchase and shipped from the capital. Groceries are available in the city center which you either walk to (~20 minute walk) or ride bicycle/ motorbike. They are typical Asian open-air fruit and veggie shutters, chicken available at the butcher shop and fresh milk available in a large vat that needs to be taken home and boiled before consuming. The only other dairy product available is a local made yogurt. It is typical that expats have a “Didi”, a Nepali women working in your home to help with cooking and basic cleaning/ laundry- which would be necessary if you are working full time at the hospital and do not have a stable family support to prepare food and maintain home-life.

WORKING ENVIRONMENT:
* The majority of these positions work directly with other hospital staff and patients. Because of the fluctuating nature of expat’s schedules, there are 0-8 expats that you will have in the community itself with you and 0-6 who will be present and joining the hospital for professional duties each day. The hospital director is Nepali but is incredibly “multicultural” and has amazing English. He is a joy to work with and is very encouraging. The Nepali staff have varying levels of English, usually all doctors can speak English but nurses mostly have only nominal English. Other staff, paramedics and health assistants are usually trained locally and only speak Nepali. The staff are all very encouraged by expat help, yet it is very important to maintain a humble attitude that always is cognizant of lifting them up in their care even in circumstances that you do not agree with. A great deal of culture plays into the decisions around medical ethics and an attitude of learning is very important.

INTERNSHIP:
No

Location:
Nepal, Asia

Get Started

Opportunity