News
Prakash Kumar Mahto at NorDoc Summer School in Oslo
NorDoc Summer School is a get-together of all the PhDs from the Nordic countries. This year the University of Oslo was the host for the summer school from 10-12 August, and it rotates every year around the Nordic countries. More information can be found here.
This year NORHED PhDs were also invited to attend the NorDoc Conference and present posters. There was also a preconference workshop organized for sixteen NORHED PhDs on 8th August. The participants for this workshop were NORHED PhDs from Nepal, Argentina, Tanzania, Ethiopia and some other African countries. A city walk was also organized in Oslo on 9th August for all the Nordic and NORHED PhDs.
Prakash Kumar Mahto, of our project, presented a poster with the title: 'Translation, Validation and Reliability of OMSQ: Nepali Version'.
Synopsis: “Given the high prevalence of musculoskeletal pain in Nepal and the limited availability of assessment resources in a local language, there is a pressing need for a comprehensive biopsychosocial tool that can both evaluate pain and predict disability in the Nepali language and context."
Nishchal Ratna Shakya completes doctorate at NTNU
Nishchal Ratna Shakya defended his thesis for the degree of philosophiae doctor (PhD) at the Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU).
The title of the thesis was: Development of Physiotherapy as an integral part of the health system in Nepal
The candidate’s main supervisor was Professor Ann-Katrin Stensdotter, NTNU.
Co-supervisors have been Associate Professor Biraj Man Karmacharya, Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences, Associate Professor Gillian Webb, University of Melbourne, and Head of Department Hellen Myezwa, University of the Witwatersrand.
Congratulations!
Pictured below is Nishchal Ratna Shakya with supervisors, opponents and chair.
Strengthening academic capacity in physiotherapy education in Nepal
Strengthening academic capacity in physiotherapy education in Nepal
The Norwegian Program for Capacity Development in Higher Education and Research for Development (NORHED), aims to strengthen the capacity of higher educational institutions in developing countries to produce higher-quality graduates, high-quality research, and more inclusive higher education. The NORHED-II program has funded the project, “Strengthening academic capacity in physiotherapy education in Nepal”.
New Master's programmes in Nepal
Great new from Ranjeeta S. Acharya at Kathmandu University School Of Medical Sciences (KUSMS) and Dhulikhel Hospital in Nepal!
"We would like to share that this year we have approval for starting the Master's programme in Community Based Rehabilitation (2 seats) and Neurology (2 seats) in Physiotherapy.
This marks the specialty division of physiotherapy at the level of the Nepal government. So far, for any intake of Master of Physiotherapy at the government level, the vacancy announcement has been only Master of Physiotherapy (not mentioning the specialty). NEPTA has been lobbying for a specialty in opening the vacancy, hopefully this specialty division at the Medical Education Commission MEC), Nepal government will help to recognise the specialty division in Nepal."
"Through NORHED, physiotherapy in Nepal have achieved a milestone," comments Ms Acharya.
Below is a video with Ms Acharya describing the Master's programmes available in Nepal as she saw it only one year ago. A year can make a lot of difference!
Govinda Mani Nepal at World Physiotherapy Congress in Tokyo
Our PhD candidate Mr. Govinda Mani Nepal represented Nepal at the distinguished World Physiotherapy Congress 2025, held at the Tokyo International Forum, Tokyo, Japan, on 30th May 2025.
Presentation Title: Translation, Cross-Cultural Adaptation, and Validation of the Barthel Index into Nepali Language
This important work addresses the need for culturally and linguistically appropriate assessment tools in Nepal’s rehabilitation context, enhancing the accuracy and relevance of patient evaluations across diverse populations.
Congratulations to Govinda Nepal for this outstanding achievement and for contributing to evidence-based rehabilitation practices in Nepal!
Workshop: Gender and Gender-based violence for Physiotherapists
A two-day Gender and Gender-Based Violence (GBV) workshop was conducted on 22 & 23 December 2024, with 60 participants at Dhulikhel Hospital for physiotherapy. The students were from Kathmandu University School of Medical Sciences (KUSMS) and Kathmandu Medical College (KMC).
A three-day workshop on the same theme was held 26-28 December at Hotel view Bhrikuti in Lalitpur. It was attended by 40 leading physiotherapists practicing in government and non-government organizations, academic institutions, rehabilitation centers, corporate hospitals, and private clinics. The aim was to deepen the understanding of gender-related issues and GBV, particularly in the context of healthcare practices.
The NORHED project facilitates hiring of more physiotherapists to the clinic at Kathmandu Medical College!
Village health promotion program in Nepal
In Roshi village of Kavre, the Physiotherapy Team of Dr. Ranjeeta Acharya conducted a health promotion program focused on menstrual hygiene, hand hygiene, and the role of physiotherapy in managing dysmenorrhea. The initiative targeted 50 female students from grades 7 to 9 at a government school in a rural village, where health literacy on these topics remains low.
In addition to empowering students with essential knowledge and practical skills, they also educated school teachers, ensuring a broader and more lasting impact on the community’s well-being. They also distributed safe hygiene kit which included two reusable pads, nail cutter and a soap.
NTNU PhD Students Excel at Neptacon 2023
At Neptacon 2023, two PhD students from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) distinguished themselves. Nepal Physiotherapy Association (NEPTA) is a national organization of professional Nepalese physiotherapists. Prakash Matho presented his research on "Chronic non-specific low back pain in rural and urban Nepalese populations," earning the Best Oral Scientific Presentation award. His colleague, Govinda Mani Nepal, was a national speaker, discussing "Prognostic indicators and tools in physiotherapy." Additionally, Matho presented on the rehabilitation of Arthritis at World PT Day, aligning with the event's theme of Chronic Arthritis.
Prakash Matho awarded Best Oral Scientific Presentation award 2023
Govinda Mani Nepal invited as national speaker 2023
Prakash Matho attend walkathon at World PT day 2023
Poster presentation at World Physiotherapy Congress 2023
At the World Physiotherapy Congress 2023 2-4 June 2023 a poster with the title: "Designing a professional learning course on the fundamentals of education for Nepalese physiotherapy lecturers: a North-South-South collaboration" was presented. Click here to download poster.
Global Health Annual Report 2022
The annual report highlights some of the key global health activitites. In the report you will find a one page perspective article by PhD student and member of workpackage 1,4 and 5 Prakash Kumar Mahto Head of Clinic at Kathmandu Medical College. You can download the report on this website: https://www.globalhealth.no/assets/img/Annual-Report.pdf
Contributes to physiotherapy education and research in Nepal
After Easter, a delegation from the physiotherapist education at NTNU in Trondheim will travel to Nepal in connection with a project to strengthen the academic competence in physiotherapy education and physiotherapy research in the country.
INTEGRATING GENDER AND SOCIAL INCLUSIVENESS IN THE CURRICULA AND GOVERNANCE OF HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS IN NEPAL
WORKSHOP (REPORT)
You can also find informaton about the workshop at:
Workshop: Integrating gender and social inclusiveness in curricula and governance of higher education institutions in Nepal (13-14 November 2022| Dulikhel)
The Himalayan University Consortium (HUC), KU School of Medical Sciences and Kathmandu medical college are organising a residential workshop that will raise awareness among senior university administrators and healthcare professionals in Nepal of gender inequalities and other forms of social exclusion. Workshop participants will discuss practical pathways to integrate gender and social inclusiveness in curricula and governance in higher education institutions in Nepal.
During the break-out sessions, healthcare professionals will be introduced to the current situation of gender inequalities and social exclusion in healthcare sectors and discuss influencing factors, barriers, and challenges. Senior university administrators will be updated with key findings of a regional study on the state of gender and social inclusiveness in curricula among HUC members in the Hindu Kush Himalaya.
New Bachelor program started
The new Bachelor program at Kathmandu Medical College (KMC) is up and running fall 2022 with 30 students.
5 seats approved for the Master of physiotherapy programme.
Tentative start for the master program in February 2023 read more
Pedagogic introductory course successfully presented to 13 physiotherapy lecturers
The first part of the introductory course; Fundamentals of Teaching and Learning in Physiotherapy Education, was successfully presented to 13 physiotherapy lecturers. It was conducted through distance learning, a combination of self-learning, synchronous and asynchronous sessions. The course was divided into four units. read more
Director of Norad, and NTNU Dean visiting Nepal 2022
Bård Vegar Solhjell, director of NORAD, travels to Nepal in October to visit Kathmandu University and others involved in NORHED projects.
The Dean, Siri Forsmo, and staff at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences will travel to Nepal in the beginning of November. They will visit the Norwegian Embassy, Kathmandu Medical College (KMC), Kathmandu University and Kathmandu University School of Medical Science (KUSMS) and Dhulikhel Hospital. They will be accompanied by the Section for International Relations at NTNU and representatives from NORAD, funder of the NORHED II program. In addition, representative from Nepali Med Norway joins the team who will pay a visit to Dolakha Hospital. The NTNU coordinator for the ADVANCE II project on violence against women is also travelling with team. So is the leader of the Norwegian Research School for Global Health.
Equity Seminar 2022
On the 13th and 14th of November, an Equity seminar will be held in Dhulikhel arranged by Kathmandu Medical College (KMC) and Kathmandu University School of Medical Science (KUSMS) sponsored by NORHED II projects, ICIMOD and HUC. This is a cross cutting event arranged in collaboration by different NORHED II projects in Nepal.
Workshops Kathmandu University School of Medical Science 2022
The NORHED physio team will conduct workshops at and Kathmandu University School of Medical Science (KUSMS) with the faculty who will teach at the new master program. The NORHED physio team will also conduct workshops with the teachers at the new bachelor program at Kathmandu Medical College (KMC) and participate in teaching of the bachelor students.