Child population of Nepal
Nepal’s child population of age 14 and below constitutes 34.9% of the total population. Children age 16 years and below make up 39.8% of the population, and 44.4% are below 19 years. Despite various legislative and programmatic measures to ensure children’s rights, they are still facing many problems that lead to uncertainty and vulnerabilities in their lives. Adolescents, the young population of 10- 19 years, make up 24.2% of the population. The median age of Nepal 22.26 in 2011. (Source: Population Monograph of Nepal, Volume I Population Dynamics, Government of Nepal, National Planning Commission Secretariat, Central Bureau of Statistics, 2014.)
Child Healthcare in Nepal
Child health care in Nepal is focused on fundamental preventive, supportive and curative model. Child health care is integrated with the overall healthcare system with no particular focus on complicated or chronic illnesses. There is a lack of specialty-specific child health care system or facility for complex genetic, metabolic, cardiac, endocrinological, mental health and other non- communicable diseases.
Pediatric doctors in Nepal
The human health resources to support this two-fifth of the population Nepal are inadequate. As of December 2020, Nepal Medical Council records, 689 (8.3%) of the 8314 registered medical specialists in Nepal are pediatricians or pediatric specialists. This number includes all registered practicing and non-practicing (non-clinical, retired, expired or doctors abroad). The community-level child health programs are run by integrating the health care system and training the local allied medical staff. This has improved the immunization, care of acute respiratory infections, management of fever, diarrhea etc. When there is a need for specialty care for children, it is still limited and disproportionately centralized.
Registered Pediatricians in Nepal Medical Council (December 2020)
General Pediatrics: 669
Pediatric Hematology/Oncology-1
Pediatric Nephrology- 1
Pediatric Hematology- 1
Pediatric Gastroenterology – 1
Pediatric Surgery- 16
Total : 689*
*Includes non-practicing doctors and doctors abroad.
(Source: Specialty Registered doctors, Nepal Medical Council)
