Let’s not discriminate against health workers

Dr. Mona Pradhan joined the World Health Organization, Country Office for Nepal, last year as  a Field Medical Officer (FMO). A Kathmandu native, Dr. Mona had to move to Butwal as her duty station was based at the Provincial Health Emergency Operations Center in Lumbini Province.

As an FMO, Dr. Mona leads a team of four, and is responsible for responding to any incident of health emergency which occurs within the province. This entails travelling across the 12 districts in the province whenever there is any reported incident of an outbreak.  As soon as her team is notified about a potential outbreak, they jump into action: visiting the location, coordinating with the district health office and local level authorities and inspecting the situation. Dr. Mona then provides technical advice and assistance to the district health office to control  the outbreak.

Dr. Mona and her team have also been working alongside the MoHP in Lumbini Province and supporting COVID-19 response by assisting in data collection, trend analysis and resource mapping and monitoring.

While she arrived in Butwal with much enthusiasm, Dr Mona recalls how challenging the first month proved to be.

"I had a tough time finding a place to live. I was rejected by more than ten houseowners simply because I was a doctor," said Dr. Mona, who arrived in the city at a time when there was still widespread stigma surrounding COVID-19 and health workers.

Despite the many challenges faced, Dr. Mona said she still feels ecstatic about working at WHO and contributing to the health emergency response through her role. But she has a request to all.  “Health workers are working day and night to save lives so I urge everyone to spread love, end discrimination.”