Western Kentucky, Nepal

Having an effective healthcare system has been a priority for every government in modern times. Everybody has a significant event, or emergency in their lives that at a minimum requires medical assistance, and sometimes hospitalization. The kind of medical care received can vary widely based on availability, and personal preference. Destitute hospitals are often the result of failed policies, or unstable governments, In the book “Little Princes”, Connor Grennan describes the hospital conditions in Kathmandu, Nepal during a civil war. While some clear similarities exist between the Hospitals in the Western Kentucky, U.S.A., and Kathmandu, Nepal, there are striking differences.
The hospitals in Kathmandu, and Western Kentucky have some common
For instance, in Western Kentucky, the medical facilities are kept up to maintain a comfortable, pleasing appeal that engenders confidence in the abilities of the hospital and staff. Inside there are clean, orderly seats in the waiting room, and an adequate number of modern rooms for patients. The hospital in Kathmandu was described as a terrible place with patients sitting or lying down everywhere with dirty bandages covering their wounds (37). Hospital rooms in Kathmandu are unclean, do not have sinks, or trashcans, and overcrowding is common because there are not enough beds for all the patients (51,52). In the Western Kentucky hospitals, the rooms, and beds are always in excellent condition, and frequently have only one person in each room. With the latest technology and emphasis on comfort, the hospitals in Kentucky can seem more like a motel room than a hospital. Contrary to Western Kentucky, the rooms in Kathmandu are poorly lit, and contain about twenty rusting metal framed beds frequently shared by two family members (51, 130) . Normal day-to-day hospital operations in Kathmandu would be appalling to someone who has never traveled outside the United
In Western Kentucky hospitals are held to a high standard of care, cleanliness, and safety. Multiple hospitals in the area create competition, and provide hospitals with the incentive to be the best. Subsequently, improving facilities, availability, and the quality of care to the patients. Western Kentucky hospitals focus on the patients, knowing they will return to the same hospital if they feel an exhaustive effort to provide the best care and comfort is made. The circumstances that make the Patan Hospital in Kathmandu so different from the Hospitals in Western Kentucky is caused by the political state it operates in. Having been through ten years of civil war, and being one of the poorest countries in the world, Kathmandu, Nepal, does not have enough resources to upgrade the hospital, or increase the number of medical personnel. This caused the hospital to be so understaffed that they were not able to take care of all the patients, and family members had to assist in maintaining constant care (51). The housekeeping supplies were so diminished that a section of the hospital had only thin, not always clean blankets to put on the beds, and three portable heaters provide the heat in the winter