Prof. Dr. Rita Thapa
Prof. Dr. Rita Thapa, a public health expert with degrees from King George Medical College, Lucknow University (MBBB), and Johns Hopkins University (MPH), has left an incredible mark in Nepal’s healthcare. Prof. Dr. Thapa, Founding Chair Person and Pro-Bono Executive Director of Bhaskar-Tejshree Memorial Foundation is currently engaged in protecting young lives from the deadly NCD risk behaviors like tobacco, including that of gender discrimination and sexual harassment. She is widely known as the visionary and founder of Nepal’s primary health care system, which has been responsible for making Nepal a global leader achieving the ‘15 MDG targets in maternal and child health. She is one of the few people still living who attended the famous 1978 International Conference on Primary Health Care at Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan, representing Nepal and signing the Declaration of Alma-Ata, which is now considered the “gold standard” for primary health care programs around the world.
Prof. Dr. Rita Thapa’s career spans more than half a century of distinguished leadership in maternal and child health, primary health care, and community health in Nepal and internationally. Post-retirement, she continued her service to Nepal, playing roles in health policy restructuring, teaching at B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, leading societies like Nepal Perinatal Society and Nepal Public Health Foundation, and influencing Kathmandu University.
Major publications:
- Maternity Waiting Home Interventions as a Strategy for Improving Birth Outcomes: A Scoping Review and Meta-Analysis
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5334%2Faogh.3496 - Is the Job Satisfaction Survey a good tool to measure job satisfaction amongst health workers in Nepal? Results of a validation analysis
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-016-1558-4 - Effect of deploying biomedical equipment technician on the functionality of medical equipment in the government hospitals of rural Nepal
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12960-022-00719-y - Content of antenatal care and perception about services provided by primary hospitals in Nepal: a convergent mixed methods study
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093%2Fintqhc%2Fmzab049 - The quality of skilled birth attendants in Nepal: High aspirations and ground realities
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0214577 - Validating a tool to measure auxiliary nurse midwife and nurse motivation in rural Nepal
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12960-015-0021-7 - Retention of nurses in rural Nepal: are short term contracts the answer?
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-6963-14-S2-P80