ABOUT US
Our HISTORY
In 2015 two acupuncturists and Chinese manual therapists, Lucy Dean and Lian Li, were volunteering in a Kathmandu integrated hospital when a major earthquake hit the region. Immediately following the earthquake, the pair supported the relief efforts by assisting in two evacuation centres in Pokhara working with the British Gurkha Welfare Scheme. It soon became clear that the evacuees were suffering not only from the immediate consequences of this devastating disaster but also severe, untreated chronic pain. The volunteers started using acupuncture and Chinese manual therapeutic techniques and saw immediate and profound results. During the month following the earthquake they treated between twenty and forty patients a day and pain relief health camps were set up in the evacuation centres, within the British camp in Pokhara to treat staff and on an ad hoc basis for fellow relief workers.
With the encouragement and support of a local team and international founders such as Dr. Aram Akopyan, NPR was born, since then 16 volunteers have conducted over ten projects in Nepal delivering nearly 12,000 free treatments. Since 2017 NPR found its permanent base in Charikot Dolakha, through a beautiful partnership with the TUKI Rural Development Association, with a three bed, 15 chair clinic space. Every year we receive more and more patients; the queues are never ending.
OUR TEAM
Lucy Dean
President
I'm Lucy, together with my husband Doshan and our international Rep Lianli, we established Nepal Pain Relief in 2015 after experiencing the 2015 earthquake and realising how valuable Chinese medicine and other pain relief services can be to the most affected areas.
Before working in Nepal I was a consultant in the WHO Traditional Medicine Unit, while also starting up my own clinic in Geneva. Since working between Nepal and Geneva I have been so moved by the amazing support of the patients in Geneva for our project.
In the coming years I hope the two clinics can keep developing and the Charikot clinic can become a fully manned healthcare facility.
Hi, I’m a deep tissue massage therapist co-running BODDHI CLINIC in Geneva since leaving Nepal in late 2015. With my wife Lucy, I founded NPR in 2015. I support project management of all aspects of running the charity from Geneva and actively take part in as many Pain Relief Camps as possible.
I handle much of the logistics of the pre-camp preparation while helping international volunteers and staff to understand the nuances of the uniquely Nepalese setting and culture. After seven years in Switzerland I can sometimes see where there may be confusion or communication issues between very different cultures, so I like to help keep things running smoothly.
Doshan Gurung
Co-founder
Rajju Pradhan
Namaste, I am Rajju Pradhan and I hold a Master’s degree in Rural Development from Tribhuvan University in Kathmandu and a Post Graduate Diploma in Disaster Management from Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi.
I have been associated with NPR since the initial phase, coordinating and establishing NPR clinics in Sindhupalchowk and Dolakha, which are the most affected areas by the devastating earthquake in 2015.
I am involved as a NPR Country Coordinator in the smooth operation of clinics with close collaboration with our local partner. TUKI, Charikot.
Local Representative
Namaste, I’m Journey Pradhan. I have a B.A in International Relations from Webster University in Geneva and have been working in Nepal Pain Relief since 2015. It has been a pleasure working at NPR, providing pain relief services to people in need in my home country.
One of our aims is to promote healthy well-being in a developing country such as Nepal, where the majority of the population work with great challenges to physical and mental health. Additionally, I appreciate our international volunteer’s effort in healing the people of Nepal for a better life.
As treasurer, I am always looking for more sustainable funding opportunities and hope to make our Charikot a full time clinic.
Journey Pradhan
Treasurer
Luna Pereira
Hi I'm Luna Pereira. I am studying communication and digital marketing at SAWI in Lausanne. I already work with Lucy and Doshan, they proposed me to join their team in 2022. So now I work for them for NPR.
It's a privilege and a pleasure to work for a beautiful cause like this one. My job is creating content for social media and build a great site to inspire people to help us.
By the site, the people can see what is going on in Nepal and how much they need us.
Project Manager Communication & Marketing
I was involvement with NPR from the beginning, Right after the big earthquake in Nepal. We were there on the ground with rapid deployment of Volunteer clinics to the first responders and the local populations offering TCM services, acupuncture, Tuina, Moxa and other therapies.
As a Field Clinic Supervisor I worked with NPR in identifying and establishing Clinic sites for the Local First responders, The Nammo Budha School for orphaned children, the Gurkha.
In a matter of the first 30 days, our centers saw over one thousand patients who benefited from our TCM services. Currently I am organizing a group of graduates from the Athens College of East Asian Medicine as a group for fall of 2022.
DR. Aram Akopyan
Field Clinic Supervisor
our
partners
European Institute of Integrative Health Sciences
