When in 2002 the world leaders gathered in Johannesburg for the World Summit on Sustainable Development, the number of people below the poverty line and the extent of environmental degradation facing them had never been greater. In the Asia and Pacific region, with two thirds of the world’s poor, addressing poverty reduction and environmental management in a more integrated manner is central to...

BACKGROUND Many claims are made that the use of traditional medicine is a substantial and growing part of healthcare behavior around the world. In Bhutan traditional medical practice is one of the country's tangible heritages. The country hosts two forms of traditional medicines: local healing practices and the official traditional medical system known as sowa rigpa, meaning "the science of hea...

OBJECTIVES The Bhutanese Screening Programme recommends a Pap smear every 3 years for women aged 25-65 years, and coverage ranges from 20% to 60%, being especially challenging in rural settings. The 'REACH-Bhutan' study was conducted to assess the feasibility and outcomes of a novel approach to cervical cancer screening in rural Bhutan. DESIGN Cross-sectional, population-based study of cervic...

BACKGROUND The Bhutanese So-wa-rig-pa medicine (BSM) was integrated with the allopathic (modern) health care system in 1967. Ever since the health care integration policy was implemented, the BSM has gone through many phases of quality improvement and changes including the establishment of one university-based institute, 58 hospitals and Basic Health Units (BHU)-based health care services, and ...

PURPOSE To determine and compare the major causes of childhood blindness and severe visual impairment in Bhutan and Laos. DESIGN Independent cross-sectional surveys. METHODS This survey consists of 2 cross-sectional observational studies. The Bhutanese component was undertaken at the National Institute for Vision Impairment, the only dedicated school for the blind in Bhutan. The Laotian stu...

BACKGROUND Bhutan is currently facing a double burden of non-communicable (NCDs) and communicable diseases, with rising trends of NCDs. The 2014 STEPS survey identified high prevalence of several NCD risk factors; however, associations with socio-demographic characteristics as well as clustering of risk factors were not assessed. This study aimed to determine the distribution and clustering of ...

The year 2020 in Bhutan was dominated by the coronavirus pandemic, a decline state revenues, and territorial claims China. In 2019, Bhutan’s strong economy suggested that country would graduate from least developed category 2023. economic impact of pandemic on makes this less certain.

High-resolution satellite imagery is a viable source of imagery for spatial data generation in a developing country such as Bhutan. Half-metre to 1m resolution HRSI has the potential to be used for topographic map compilation and 2.5m stereo imagery could be employed for DEM generation and for mapping in more remote, non-urban and non-agricultural areas. This paper overviews an ongoing project,...