Kathmandu Metropolitan City to Launch 'Little Doctors' Program in Schools to Promote Preventive Health Education

Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) is set to launch the 'Little Doctors' program in schools to promote preventive health education among children. The metropolis has informed that the program will initially commence as a pilot project in four community schools.

Medical Officer of the KMC Health Department, Dr. Diwosh Neupane, stated, "This program provides training on five subjects: personal hygiene and sanitation, nutrition, lifestyle and non-communicable diseases, communicable diseases and antimicrobial resistance, first aid and safety, and mental health and leadership."

Peer-to-peer learning, experimental and role-playing activities, and record-keeping and monitoring are the main methods of learning. After a three-month training based on the curriculum, students are allowed to conduct preventive health promotion programs in groups for the remaining nine months.

Each health club will comprise 15 to 20 students. Acting Mayor Sunita Dangol informed that this method is suitable for enhancing health awareness and facilitating peer learning among children. She instructed officials, "When taking the program to schools, it should not feel like a burden to those implementing it; the necessity must be felt. The eagerness to implement it by any means must be awakened. Only then will the program be sustainable and effective. Its results will be seen slowly, but they will be positive."

Programs related to adolescent sexual and reproductive health are also needed in schools. Chini Kaji Maharjan, Coordinator of the Education and Health Committee, said, "Students of community schools must be made self-confident for positive competition. For this, additional effort must be made for the effective learning of programs within the 'Bookless Friday' activities."

At the workshop, Deepak Kumar KC, Chief of the Health Department, stated that a comprehensive program will be formulated based on the feedback received from the pilot program. "This program should possibly be the first in schools. We will make it result-oriented," he said. Education Officer Keshav Gyawali mentioned that implementation will be easier only if the School Management Committee, principal, and teachers are convinced of the program's aspects.

The program, which aims to develop students studying in schools as health ambassadors by training them on health issues, has been named 'Little Doctors'. The goal of the program is to enhance health awareness among students, families, and the community.