Valley
Singha Durbar staff suffering from multiple ailments
Doctors say inactive lifestyle, poor eating habits and stress adding to the health crisis among state employees.Arjun Poudel
A majority of government officials at Singha Durbar are suffering from multiple health complications such as hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol, kidney diseases, anxiety and depression, according to the studies and medical records of Civil Hospital.
“We have found that about 70 percent of the Singha Durbar staff suffer from diabetes and hypertension,” Dr Dinesh Kumar Lamsal, chief of the Department of Family Medicine and Emergency at the hospital, told the Post. “Some employees also have anxiety and depression.”
Singha Durbar is the country’s federal administrative heart, where most ministries and important government offices are located. Civil Hospital has been conducting regular health check-ups of its employees.
According to the hospital administration, many civil servants are unaware of the health ailments they suffer from.
“The medical records of the Singha Durbar employees show that most of them are unaware of their health issues,” said Lamsal. “This problem could get worse since the workplace environment hasn’t improved yet.”Doctors say government employees serving in other agencies outside the Singha Durbar also have numerous health issues.
“This is not just the case of employees in Singha Durbar,” said Dr Janmanjay Chauhan, senior medical officer at Civil Hospital. According to him, sedentary lifestyle, eating habits and stress are contributing to the health crisis among government employees. Doctors advise employees to visit the hospital if they feel something is not right with their health. According to Chauhan, the hospital has been referring civil servants to Shahid Gangalal National Heart Centre and Manmohan Cardiothoracic Vascular and Transplant Center for advanced illnesses.
“Some have blood pressure levels as high as 180 by 100 and they are not even aware of it,” said Chauhan.
Lamsal said though the hospital had proposed that the government provide psychological counselling services to government employees, the concerned authorities at Singha Durbar did not take the hospital’s proposal seriously.
“We conduct health check-ups in the meeting hall,” he said. “An environment where the patient can talk freely with their doctor is necessary but they [the Prime Minister’s Office] don’t think it’s important.”
The number of staff signing up for regular check-ups has declined for want of a conducive environment inside Singha Durbar, doctors say.
Earlier, doctors would examine employees in a room on the ground floor of the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers. But after the 2015 earthquake, that room is no longer available.