Their first task is to buy medicines, opreation material, infusion liquids, injections, needles, etc. needed for the operation - at the nearest pharmacy. Only then an operation can take place. Faced with lack of funds, hospitals store only a very limited supply of materials, to be used for urgent operations, the costs of which will also be reimbursed afterwards by the patient's family. Over 80 per cent of people living in remote areas still trust in local medicine men, with their own home made medicines, which are mainly plant-based. Hospital treatment is too expensive.
Most people only visit the physician if the witch doctor's treatment was ineffective.
Peasants living in the south have in a way learnt to live with various diseases. For visiting Nepal, antimalarial prophyilaxis is not needed. The majority of the Kathmandu Valley population is the Newars, and it is with them that the reasons for recent changes in the caste system lie. Castes can be distinguished by appearance - the higher caste, the lighter the tan and the softer the face features. Every other woman by the age of 35 suffers from gallstones, with all accompanying ailments.