Burn patients in Nepal bear brunt of scarce resources and experts

People getting injured in fire accidents are not that uncommon in Nepal. Last month, Nepali Congress leader Chandra Bhandari got seriously injured after a gas cylinder leaked and is undergoing treatment at the National Burns Centre in Mumbai, India. His mother Harikala Bhandari died during treatment at the Nepal Cleft and Burn Center of Kirtipur Hospital.

That incident created a debate about the potential of treatment for burn patients in Nepal. Experts say that given the absence of a separate dedicated burn hospital and a team of specialists , treatment is not possible. According to them, they are compelled to refer severe burns patients to India. In other words, a patient who cannot go to India may die.