Nepal Heart Centre Boosts Free Treatment Cover for Children

Sunita Kumari, a 16-year-old from Bara district, faced a recurring obstacle: the cost of her life-saving heart surgery. Despite multiple admissions to the Shahid Gangalal National Heart Centre in Kathmandu, she was repeatedly sent home without the procedure because her family could not cover the expenses exceeding the hospital's previous Rs250,000 free treatment limit.

Her case, like that of hundreds of other children with serious heart ailments, highlighted the inadequacy of the previous funding ceiling. Even with financial assistance, the actual cost of complex cardiac surgeries, including medicines and related expenses, often surpassed the available support. Sunita's parents had managed to gather only Rs70,000 through donations for her fourth visit, most of which went towards medicines and tests.

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Even during her fourth visit, her parents had managed to collect only Rs70,000 through donations, and most of it was spent on medicines, laboratory tests, travel expenses and other costs.

Recognizing this critical gap, the hospital has now revised its financial assistance scheme. The ceiling has been tiered: Rs250,000 for minor cases, Rs400,000 for moderate cases, and Rs600,000 for critical cases. This move is expected to prevent children like Sunita from being denied treatment due to financial shortfalls.

Dr. Rabindra Bhakta Timala, acting executive director of the hospital, expressed the urgency behind the decision, stating, "We have seen too many children being taken home without treatment, and many never return because their families cannot arrange the money." The government's decision to stop additional funding for free cardiac care for children under 15 some two and a half years ago had exacerbated the situation, forcing families to seek loans or take their children home without treatment.

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We have seen too many children being taken home without treatment, and many never return because their families cannot arrange the money.