About Us

Nyaya Health is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization working to improve the health of poor communities in Nepal through the provision of medical and public health services.  See our 2007 annual report.

Mission Statement

Our organization is a unique assembly of Nepal- and US-based public health experts and healthcare providers who use our collective expertise to develop long-term, system-level improvements in healthcare delivery in impoverished areas.  Through the innovative application of epidemiological methodologies, information and communication technologies, and accountable community- based management structures, we seek to develop scalable models for expanding health equity and access to marginalized populations.  See our guiding philosophy.

Where we work

Achham is one of the poorest districts in Nepal and has been severely affected by war and poverty. It is home to 250,000 people who are served by only one doctor. The district suffers from some of the highest maternal and child mortality rates in South Asia.  The annual per capita income is $150, and many people migrate to India for work. Migration has fueled an HIV epidemic with 8-10% of returning migrants testing positive for HIV.

Statistics

Number of citizens: 250,000

Number of doctors (excluding Nyaya Health): 1 (located 5 hours away)

Number of ultrasound machines: 0 (none in an area with over 1 million people)

99.5% of babies are delivered outside a health center

1 in 125 deliveries result in death of the mother

60% of children are chronically malnourished

Average person makes $150 a year

About half of the men migrate to India in search of work

Over 7% of the men returning from Mumbai are HIV-positive

Nearest functioning airport and hospital: 10 hours by bus, costs 1-2 months' income

What we do
The heart of Nyaya Health activities in Achham is a four-bed, five-room clinic focusing on primary care, maternal and child health, HIV, and tuberculosis. Our clinic is run by an all-Nepali staff consisting of a physician, community healthcare workers, midwives, lab technicians, and project managers. We are expanding a network of community health workers who provide essential outreach and triage services to our geographically dispersed population.  These services have been developed in collaboration with the government of Nepal; the ultimate goal is full integration with  public-sector health programs.  Over the next year, we will be developing a community telemedicine center, applying information and communication technologies in innovative ways to improve the effectiveness and equity of our health services. We will also be piloting management programs to improve community ownership, accountability and responsiveness of health services.  Additionally, we are exploring mechanisms of sustainable, accountable financing through microfinance and community-based insurance.  In the long-term, we are renovating, stocking and staffing a hospital that was abandoned 25 years ago, to expand our medical, obstetric, and surgical capacity.

An Open Source Organization

Nyaya Health strive towards the highest standards of transparency and accountability. In this pursuit, we have adopted an entirely "open source" organizational approach. Our budget, activities and plans are all online, and fully accessible to the public.We employ both electronic and paper-based methods that provide full disclosure to donors and the general public. This includes our central website (www.nyayahealth.org), which acts as a source for general news and information; an online "wiki" (nyayahealth.pbwiki.com), or rapidly-editable webpage, which provides extensive details about our clinical protocols and operations; and our blog (nyayahealth.wordpress.com), where we post stories about the community and our efforts to improve healthcare services.