Mental Health Care in Nepal: Challenges and Accomplishments

Dr. Sushrusha Arjyal is a Board-certified psychiatrist and a sleep specialist. She has been at Duke University since 2017 and is an Assistant professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Neurology. Dr. Arjyal is originally from Nepal where she completed her primary education. She went to medical school in Pakistan. After that she migrated to United States, completed her residency from Berkshire Medical Center, Massachusetts in Psychiatry. She then went on to complete her fellowship in Sleep Medicine from Wake Forest school of Medicine, NC. At Duke, Dr Arjyal is actively involved in teaching residents and fellows. She is the elective director for Sleep Medicine in the Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Arjyal practices as an outpatient Psychiatrist and Sleep specialist at Duke outpatient clinics. At Duke, she has served in several committees including Safety, Strategic planning and Residency recruitment committee. She also served as the medical director of the Sleep lab under the Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Arjyal volunteers her time in several committees outside Duke with her interest in enhancing mental healthcare access to underserved communities. Dr. Arjyal is an active member of race ethnicity and Equity Committee half North Carolina psychiatric association. Also, she is currently the Vice president of Health Foundation Nepal. A Non-profit organization founded in 2013 which is actively working on providing increased access to mental health care in rural Western Nepal. Since inception, Dr. Arjyal is actively working with the team to provide access to adequate mental health care, especially to pregnant and postpartum mothers. Through the nonprofit organization, Dr. Arjyal is working on training physicians, psychologist, social workers in providing mental health care to underserved populace. Lately, she also has also focused on training mental health professionals on sleep and sleep related disorders both locally and in Nepal. Dr. Arjyal serves as a board member of another non-profit organization, Nepal Institute of National Health which was founded in 2021. Dr. Arjyal Lives in North Carolina with her family. She enjoys hiking, kayaking and reading. Link to join: https://duke.zoom.us/j/93939164794