Welcome to David Diaz's Fundraising Page

Personal Note From David:

Thanks for visiting my Personal Fundraising Page. As a board member of The Mountain Fund, I wanted to make it easy for my friends and family to make a contribution to our fundraising efforts. Donating is simple, fast and totally secure. Many thanks for your support-- and don't forget to forward this to anyone who you think might want to donate too!

The Mountain Fund's mission is to eliminate poverty, its causes and symptoms, in developing mountain areas around the globe. They have had a plan in place since 2001 to have a complete healthcare system in the Rasuwa District of Nepal. Thanks to all of their fans & loyal support, that day is nearly here!

Their new hospital is now established in the village of Kalikastan, and serves as anchor. This paired with their three additional health clinic-outposts, will create a network that reaches nearly all of the 44,000 inhabitants of the Rasuwa District.

Total Funding Goal:

$32,000 USD

For one full year of operations for the hospital and three clinics

$22,550 USD

One-time need of medical equipment

How You Can Help:

• $1 pays for one person in Rasuwa to have access to this healthcare network for one year
  
• $5 pays for an entire family in Rasuwa to have access to this healthcare network for one year
  
• $100 pays for one full days operation of the hospital and three clinics
  

- OR -

More Information About This Project:

As you can see on the map below, The Mountain Fund is planning to have a series of clinics that all nicely tie into each other and provide basic healthcare to nearly the entire Rasuwa Distrcit, 44,000 people.

[Click map to view larger image]

TMF is currently planning to provide medical equipment and a Certified Medical Assistant in the village of Tamboche. Tamboche is a small village which is centrally located to serve Gatlang, Chilime and Tatopani (about 4,000 people in all).

There is an existing government-run clinic in the village of Syabru Bensi, and TMF is planning to add one staff nurse to increase the capacity of that clinic. Syabru Bensi is centrally located between Tamboche and their existing clinic at Thulo Syabru.

TMF currently has a clinic located in the village of Thulo Syabru which is fully operational. This clinic serves approximately 4,000 people who live in villages scattered up and down both the Gossaikund and Langtang trekking routes.

The Mountain Fund's new healthcare system is designed to feed into itself. These remote health stations at Thulo Syabru and the planned one at Tamboche feed into the Syabru Bensi clinic where they'll have a nurse. From there the only road in the district goes to Kalikastan where they have a full fledged (or nearly) hospital, staffed with one doctor and one nurse. These three clinics, and the one anchor-hospital allow for basic healthcare to be available to the entire Rasuwa district, and portions of the bordering districts of Nuwakot and Dhading.

Why This Project Matters:

Located a few kilometers from the border with Tibet the Rasuwa District is home to dozens of small Tamang Villages. The Tamang are believed to have migrated from Mongolia via Tibet hundreds of years ago and settled in this remote mountain area. Life in many Tamang Villages carries on much as it has for centuries. For many of the villages subsistence farming is their way of life and these rugged, inventive people have learned how to survive on the steep hillsides of the northern Rasuwa District.

It is nearly the poorest district in Nepal ranking 66th out of 75 districts. It's a difficult area to develop as well, since the access to capital per capita is only 240 rupees (that's like $4.00) compared to, say Kathmandu, where the capital per person is over 40,000. There is one road in and out of Rasuwa and everywhere else you want to go is an uphill walk. The road is so bad that it takes 8 hours to reach the end of the road at Syabru Bensi which is 100km from Kathmandu. It's not a comfortable ride to say the least and requires 4 wheel drive. The road is frequently washed out from landslides in various sections.

The Child and Maternal Mortality rates of this area are higher than the national average. Nepal's average infant mortality rate, 78 deaths per 1000 live births, and average maternal mortality rate, 539 deaths per 100,000 live deliveries, are among the highest in the world. Nepal is the “deadliest place in the world to give birth outside Afghanistan and a clutch of countries in sub-Saharan Africa,” according to a 2006 report by the International Federation of the Red Cross. That’s because only about 1 in 5 births is attended by trained health personnel.

Other Rasuwa Health Facts:

• Existing Healthcare: One government hospital, eight government health posts and three doctors. (Government health posts suffer from chronic lack of funding and resources, are often unmanned, or lack medical supplies and medicines to provide treatment.)
• Disease in Rasuwa:

  ARI (Acute Respiratory Infection) - The under five-year age rate of incidence is 858 per 1,000

  Diarrhea - Under five-year age rate of incidence 345 per 1,000

  Malnutrition - Under five-year age rate of incidence is 60%

Where This Project Is Located:

This Project is located in the Rasuwa District of Nepal just a few kilometers from Tibet.