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By Tameka Lim-Velasco

Created: 20 April 2020

“Finding our own definition of success means becoming aware of what we value. Often, this means rinsing years of conditioned thinking from our minds.” - Anonymous 

I recently returned home to Portland Oregon after spending two months working as a volunteer at Acupuncture Relief Project (ARP) in rural Nepal. Within my first year of school at Oregon College of Oriental Medicine I knew that after I graduated from my MAOM program, I wanted to go work for ARP and Good Health Nepal. At that time, little did I know what it would actually mean for me professionally and personally. I can say without a doubt, working in an integrated clinic in rural Nepal these last few months was the most transformative journey I have ever undergone. To emphasize the enormity of such a statement I would like to share that my background includes extensive travel to 27 countries, 7-years as an Expat in Spain, two Master’s programs, 4 businesses (2 sole proprietorships, 2 LLC’s), a professional career in Business Admin, a significant history of personal health challenges and a recent separation from a six-year marriage.

Read more: Volunteer Acupuncture Care

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By Andrew Schlabach

Created: 01 April 2020

Dear friends and donors,

I want to thank you all for your continued interest and generosity towards our ongoing work in rural Nepal.

March 16th, in response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, Acupuncture Relief Project suspended clinical operations in Makwanpur Nepal by closing our Bajrabarahi clinic along with its associated satellite clinics. Our foreign volunteers were transported back to Kathmandu where they were directed to immediately depart for their home countries by their respective embassies. Elissa Chapman, our Clinic Director, was on the last flight leaving Nepal on March 22nd before the airport was closed (and now remains closed).

Following the closure of the clinic, we paid to have a Nepali community health doctor travel to Bajrabarahi to spend several days training local health workers and staff in the prevention of Coronavirus infection. We also made our clinic facilities available to the local government to be used as an emergency hospital as needed.

At this point, with all of our volunteers safely returned to their home countries and our staff under a “stay at home” order, we are in the same holding pattern as the rest of the world. So far Nepal has few confirmed cases, however, the government has been slow to react and like many developing countries, Nepal lacks the fundamental resources and infrastructure to combat a severe outbreak. All we can do is wait and hope for the best.

We will reopen our clinic as soon as we receive clearance from the health authorities and hope to return foreign volunteer practitioners to the clinic to resume primary care services in early September. Your generous contributions help maintain our staff during this time of crisis and will also be used to restart our clinic operations in the aftermath.

Please consider a donation to help continue our work by visiting our website and donating at https://acupuncturereliefproject.org/donate. Acupuncture Relief Project is a volunteer-based, 501(c)3 non-profit organization (Tax ID: 26-3335265). Donations are tax deductible in the United States (and other countries) as allowed by law.

I sincerely hope that you, your family and your community are all well and safe as we all transcend this strange set of circumstances together. One world family.

Best regards,
Andrew Schlabach EAMP LAc (USA)
President, Acupuncture Relief Project

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By Lauren Pegoli

Created: 26 January 2020

Basanti is a 32 year old woman from the small village of Bajrabarahi, about three to four hours from Kathmandu (depending on your mode of transport). Ten years ago she fell in love with Dikpal; they married and had a child together. She presented at the clinic with stage four breast and brain cancer that had metastasized, possibly spreading to her bones.

Basanti was carried into the clinic by her husband in the early morning. Requesting a bucket be placed beside her bed, within minutes she was throwing up. It was Basanti's first visit to the clinic, her chief complaint being nausea and a one-sided temporal headache. For the past fifteen days she had been vomiting intermittently due to the severity of her pain. The constant sharpness in her left temple was so severe she had been bed ridden for weeks, struggling to keep food and water down. Basanti was initially hesitant to disclose her recent history, possibly because she was weary of further medical intervention. After some time she revealed she had had a mastectomy on her right breast eight months prior, followed by six courses of chemotherapy and twenty-five days of radiation therapy. Almost as an afterthought, she told me of a lump on the left breast that had been itchy for the past few months.

Read more: End of Life Care in Rural Nepal