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 Latest News From Our Volunteers in Nepal

VOLUNTEER COMMUNITY CARE CLINICS IN NEPAL

Nepal remains one of the poorest countries in the world and has been plagued with political unrest and military conflict for the past decade. In 2015, a pair of major earthquakes devastated this small and fragile country. 

Since 2008, the Acupuncture Relief Project has provided over 300,000 treatments to patients living in rural villages outside of Kathmandu Nepal. Our efforts include the treatment of patients living without access to modern medical care as well as people suffering from extreme poverty, substance abuse and social disfranchisement.

Common conditions include musculoskeletal pain, digestive pain, hypertension, diabetes, stroke rehabilitation, uterine prolapse, asthma, and recovery from tuberculosis treatment, typhoid fever, and surgery.

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COMPASSION CONNECT : DOCUMENTARY SERIES

Episode 1
Rural Primary Care

In the aftermath of the 2015 Gorkha Earthquake, this episode explores the challenges of providing basic medical access for people living in rural areas.

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Episode 2
Integrated Medicine

Acupuncture Relief Project tackles complicated medical cases through accurate assessment and the cooperation of both governmental and non-governmental agencies.

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Episode 3
Working With The Government

Cooperation with the local government yields a unique opportunities to establish a new integrated medicine outpost in Bajra Barahi, Makawanpur, Nepal.

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Episode 4
Case Management

Complicated medical cases require extraordinary effort. This episode follows 4-year-old Sushmita in her battle with tuberculosis.

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Episode 5
Sober Recovery

Drug and alcohol abuse is a constant issue in both rural and urban areas of Nepal. Local customs and few treatment facilities prove difficult obstacles.

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Episode 6
The Interpreters

Interpreters help make a critical connection between patients and practitioners. This episode explores the people that make our medicine possible and what it takes to do the job.

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Episode 7
Future Doctors of Nepal

This episode looks at the people and the process of creating a new generation of Nepali rural health providers.

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Compassion Connects
2012 Pilot Episode

In this 2011, documentary, Film-maker Tristan Stoch successfully illustrates many of the complexities of providing primary medical care in a third world environment.

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From Our Blog

Tara Gregory | Acupunctrure Volunteer Nepal

Over the last 6 weeks treating in the clinic here in Nepal time has flown by.  As I prepare to leave in just 3 days patients tell me that it seems like I have only just arrived days ago.  I agree, I'm not ready to leave this new family and community that has been building.  I should have known that time would do funny things here in Nepal before I arrived, given that the time difference between here and my home in Oregon is not the standard 13 hour time difference.  No, there is also a 15 minute difference added into the time change.  So much is packed into each day it seems as though a month is fit into every week.  I feel that all I can do is surrender to the process, just flow with the fast pace, and hope that in time everything will settle and my consciousness will catch up!

Tara Gregory | Acupunctrure Volunteer Nepal

As time flies by I'm left with questions whirling in my head. Most questions center around what my role is here in Nepal as a health care provider.  Is my role to get patients better quickly so that they can stop coming in for treatment in the shortest amount of time possible? Is my role to provide a safe space for patients, a place for them to experience a pause from the rest of their week?  A receptive ear to listen to the suffering experienced and the joys of their lives?  The abusive husbands, the grandchildren abroad, the weddings planned, the abandoned children adopted. Do I help provide a place where community can build, a place where bonds between patients establish themselves.  Offerings made... One patient quietly slipping another money, who can not afford necessary medication. The answers come and go and shift in response to the day and the patients who arrive in my treatment room.

Tara Gregory | Acupunctrure Volunteer Nepal

Throughout this process I'm faced with so many questions and unknowns, I'm constantly challenged to just stay engaged and be present.  With time moving so quickly it is easy for me to want to slip away to a quiet place for a moment, to reflect, replay experiences, and in that way process all that I'm learning and witnessing.  Instead I challenge myself to just stay engaged with this moment.  Sometimes it is easy, watching the sunset reflected on the Himalayas, welcoming 8 new puppies into the world, the excitement of our building being under siege by the neighborhood clan of monkeys. Other times it is harder, holding a 11 year old epileptic monk as he seizes in my arms, days when the trembling of my patient suffering from Parkinson's Disease is hard to calm down, and knowing that my patient with high blood pressure will never get the necessary medication due to lack of finances and family support. These challenges have helped me cultivate an ability to stay grounded and present during intense situations. 

Tara Gregory | Acupunctrure Volunteer Nepal

Gazing at the Himalayas this morning I hope that my time here will shape me like the elements have shaped the mountains.  Cultivating strength, groundedness, and perseverance on the inside while being soft enough on the outside to be touched and shaped by what comes my way. ---Tara Gregory

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Our Mission

Acupuncture Relief Project, Inc. is a volunteer-based, 501(c)3 non-profit organization (Tax ID: 26-3335265). Our mission is to provide free medical support to those affected by poverty, conflict or disaster while offering an educationally meaningful experience to influence the professional development and personal growth of compassionate medical practitioners.


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