With the main objective of providing training to community EpiNurses for deploying assessment tool in community and soliciting feedback, Nursing Association of Nepal organized a three-day workshop on ‘Training and system orientation of Community EpiNurses’ in Melamchi community, Sindhupalchok Nepal from 26th to 28th March 2018. Twelve nurses from pilot sites participated in the workshop. Training was provided by Sushila Paudel, doctoral student for Disaster Nursing Global Leader Program, University of Kochi and TOT members: Roshani Shrestha, Sharada Barakoti, Rajkumari Gyawali, and Basanta Pokhrel from Nursing Association of Nepal. The workshop included interactive lectures on common disasters in Nepal, roles of disaster nursing, introduction of EpiNurse Program, and sharing of EpiNurse activities in contribution of Sendai Framework. Orientation of three assessment tools: ‘school health’, ‘community health’ and ‘maternal and child health’ was given along with opportunity to read and discuss each questions. Two groups of ‘school health’ and ‘community, maternal and child health’ was created, and opinions were extracted to ensure their understanding of survey instrument and to evaluate any ambiguity in the questions. Similarly, simulation for how the system questions to be deployed in field was practiced in the tablets provided. Mapping knowledge as an indispensable aspect, individual and group exercise in understanding basic features of Google map, location sharing, navigation, routing and community mapping were practiced additionally. Availability of good Internet service was found to be a challenge.

Two major achievements of the workshop were development of action plans and commitments from them. Nurses representing their respective pilot sites prepared a group level action plan carried out in participatory way and committed to perform assigned tasks in addition to their normal medical duties.