Palpa has been declared the country’s first ‘fully institutional delivery service district’. Earlier, all 10 local levels of the district had been declared fully institutional delivery service-covered.
During a program organized in Tansen on May 19, Chief Minister of Lumbini Province, Chetanarayan Acharya, declared Palpa as a district with full institutional delivery service coverage and complete vaccination sustainability assurance.
In the program, Chief Minister Acharya stated that the role of female health volunteers in raising awareness and motivating postpartum women to go to health institutions has been significant. He said that this achievement was made possible because health workers fulfilled their responsibilities in health institutions and elected representatives provided continuous leadership.
A total of 2,262 women in Palpa have delivered at health institutions. Similarly, the number of those who underwent four antenatal check-ups as per protocol is 94.56 percent, and those who underwent three postnatal check-ups is 97.57 percent. Acting Chief of the Palpa District Health Office, Tuk Prasad Pokharel, said that the declaration was made after ensuring sustainability in all 81 wards of all 10 local levels of the district. He stated that certification was completed in all municipalities of the district from Baisakh 15 to 31, followed by the district-level declaration.
In the program, Speaker of the Lumbini Provincial Assembly, Tularam Gharti Magar, emphasized that leadership must be dynamic for any campaign to succeed. Health Minister of Lumbini Province, Khem Bahadur Saru, said that citizens’ trust in government health institutions in Palpa is increasing.
It is expressed that such declarations will help achieve the government’s goal under the Sustainable Development Goals to reduce the maternal mortality rate to 70 per 100,000 live births and the neonatal mortality rate to 12 per 1,000 live births by 2030.