The number of women delivering babies at the Daagsa BHU in Monggar has increased manifold since the Basic Health Unit with a delivery room was constructed in 2007. Prior to that, women mostly gave birth at home. Most of the women gave birth at home with the health assistants visiting the houses in some cases.
The rise was also attributed to a woman health assistant being posted in the BHU.
Phunpa Tshering is one of the Health Assistants working at the Daagsa BHU. He has been working there for the past five years.“I went to each household in the villages creating awareness about the establishment of the delivery room. This has also helped them to come to the hospital for delivery,” he says.
Before, when pregnant women faced complications they were referred to the Monggar Regional Referral hospital, which is about four to five days walk. Now, with the BHU in the vicinity no complications were reported.
The BHU is also manned by a Dungtsho. The Dungtsho said getting medicines on time is one of the challenges faced due to the distance.“I face challenges when there shortage of medicine. Daagsa is far and it takes days for the medicine to reach here. Most of the medicines in the traditional healing should be taken for long durations and the medicines finishes fast,” says Dungtsho Sangay Dorji.
The Dungtsho caters to the people of Gongdue and Silambi Gewogs. The traditional medicine facility was introduced in 2006.
