Transcript Introduction to Short-term Healthcare Missions

INTRODUCTION TO
SHORT-TERM
HEALTHCARE
MISSIONS
Michael Soderling, MD
Peter Yorgin, MD
Objectives
1. Get ready, Set, Go, Finish
2. Review why Best Practices are needed.
3. Explore the world of short-term
healthcare missions – how can we do it
well?
4. Discuss some of the most controversial
issues regarding Best Practices
GET READY: Biblical basis for
short-term healthcare missions
• Healing
– Is mentioned at least 85 occasions in the Gospels.
– Jesus’ response to John the Baptist
• Luke 7:22 So he replied to the messengers, "Go back and report to
John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the
lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the
dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.
• New Testament Church
– Acts 5:16 Crowds gathered also from the towns around
Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by evil spirits,
and all of them were healed.
– Paul
Acts 14:9
Acts 28:8
• So if we follow in the footsteps of Jesus and the saints…
GET READY: Going in Advance
• First, determine if your partnership with
another Christian organization is a good fit
– Partner must have a healthcare function so
that there can be follow-up on patients
– Similar perspective on the basics of the faith
– Good pattern of communications
– Transparency regarding financial issues
– Think and Pray “Would this be a good longterm partnership?”
GET READY: Going in Advance
• Evaluate needs and resources that are available
• Logistics preparation
• Determine what God wants us collectively to do
and how we worship together
• Determine the mode of healing
– Physical
– Spiritual
– Emotional
• Determine major mode of interaction
– Education
– Healing though direct care
GET READY: Going in Advance
• Think in terms of ministering with/to six
different groups
– The people in need
– Your partner
– The Church
– The governmental leaders
– The local healthcare professionals
– Other parachurch or Christian NGO
organizations
GET READY: Preparation
• Prayerfully consider whether God is calling
you to serve in this area.
– Double confirmation
• People immediately say – “Given your past, I
understand why God is calling you to this area of
the world.”
– Prophecy
GET READY: Team members
• Honestly consider what skills are needed for the
team.
• Go heavy on people who are strong Christians,
willing to give up their own will to serve the Lord.
• Look for what God provides
– Not many physicians?
• Good! You can do a lot with community health screening.
• Vaccine program
GET READY: Team members
•
Look for what God provides
– Too many specialty physicians?
•
Consider CME seminars or teaching village
doctors
– Pre-med, pre-nursing students
•
Community education
– Carnival of Health
– Community water purification
– Diabetes education
– Too many dentists?
•
God is smiling down on you!
GET READY: Website
• Determine if a website can be of help to
the team
– Mission information
– Team application
– Team folder
– Team tasks
– Team report
G
Get Ready!
• Team Selection
– Motivation
– Faith issues
• Religious affiliation
• Homogeneity in the team can be an asset.
– Red flags?
• Health?
• Psychosocial?
– Financing
– Best fit
• Skills
• Servant’s heart
Set!
• Team meetings
– Weekly for 6 weeks
– Weekend
– Team bonding
– Time for prayer
– Education
•
•
•
•
SFINC
About the region and people.
Team structure
Expectations
Set!
• Supplies
– Medications
• WHO Model Lists of Essential Medications
– http://www.who.int/medicines/publications/essentialmedicines/e
n/
– Buy them there
– Buy them here
– Team medications
• See List on Lecture area
– Educational Supplies
• Presentations
• Plays/Skits
• Demonstration equipment
Set!
• Supplies
– Printer
• Ministry of pictures
– Gifts for missionary hosts
– Determine if you want to deposit financial
support into host accounts
• Companies like: http://www.xe.com/fx/
– Set aside money for the church to purchase
Bibles?
Set!
GO! Three plays
• In each of the cases you are people (Some who
are Christians – some not) who are hosting this
team.
• At the Team Leader’s Home
• The team is entering the country
• At the Day Clinic at a local Church
• Think about your perceptions
– Before
– During
– After
script
• Peter: Greetings, Come on in
• Peter: I am just packing medications
• Mike: I bet those people are going to be
real grateful for you doctors. And they get
Jesus too.
• Peter: Yeah, they don’t have hardly
anything. We sure can give them a these
American medications.
script
• Mike: Speaking of medications, my wife
and I asked our friends if they had some
left-over medications in their medicine
cabinets. We got a collection together for
you. Hands bag to Peter.
• Peter: Thanks, we really need
medications. You know the team has to
pay for all of their stuff, so there isn’t extra
money available to buy medications.
script
• Mike: I sure wish I was going, but I am just
a pastor. Where you are going they don’t
need people like me. But I can pray for
you…
• Peter: You know, I just hope that God
provides traveling mercies for the team
and helps us to get all of this stuff into the
country.
Comments
Take-home points
• Leave the Savior complex at home
• Seek God’s will.
• Here is what I do regarding medications
– No expired medications or medications from
peoples medicine cabinets
– Medications in country
– Allow partner to purchase or provide
medications
– Provide medications relevant to medical
problems that people really have in
Take home points
• Pastors can be an essential part of the
team
– Interacting with the mission partner
– Teaching and learning from local pastors
– Evangelism
– Helping the pastor discipling new people who
have come to Christ
• Churches that help support healthcare
mission teams are a real blessing!
script
• Peter: Come on everybody, let’s get together as
a group here. (group gathers – starts off real
quiet) We need to be careful in customs. We
have paid an inside guy to help us get through
customs. He will “help” us with any of the
customs officers that give us trouble about the
medical equipment that we will be bringing in.
Just ask for “ “ if there is a problem. Now
remember four bags per person.
script
• Group member: Should we be praying?
• Peter: Yes, pray for God’s provision in
getting the team trough customs and
immigration. (Brief prayer)
• Mike: Passport, please.
• Mike: What is in the bag?
• Peter: Just some clothes and some team
medications. We are here serving the
people with our medical skills.
script
• Mike: Do you have a letter from our government
approving your work in our country?
• Peter: We got an invitation from a group of likeminded people who are working in a remote
village outside of the capital city.
• Mike: Do you have a letter from our government
approving your work in our country?
• Peter: No
• Mike: Open your bag please.
Comments
script
• Group member: Dr, what happened after
they detained you at the airport? Did our
Partner Grace Incorporated get you out?
• Peter: I’d rather not talk about it. You know
that God provides in these situations.
• Peter: It looks like you have done a great
job setting up the clinic.
script
• Group member: Actually the church did all
of the work. They were really happy to see
us. I just wish that we had a dentist.
• Peter: How is Andy holding up?
• Group member: Good, I guess
• Peter: Who would have ever guessed that
a Neonatologist could do such a great job
taking care of 90 year old women! Thank
you Jesus!
script
• Peter: Well now that I am here, I guess
that we can really get down to work.
• Sees a patient in a few seconds. Hands a
script to lady.
• Group member: Hands baggie with
medications to lady.
• Peter: Hey, Jim I am so glad that you are
here. (quietly) Thank so much for getting
me out of that little customs tangle.
script
• Mike: Tells him how this incident with the
government will affect their ministry in this
creative access country.
Comments
These situations would be funny if
they were not true. Most of these
stories are my early experiences
with short-term mission.
GO!
• In Clinics we now look for:
– Long term relationships – no Laos this month,
Guatemala the next
– The opportunity to be part of the local Christian
doctors plans
– A way to invite the local doctors – this gives them the
chance to know Christ.
– The chance to be consultants – taking a careful
history of what the people are already being treated
with.
– A chance to pray with each person
– Opportunities to screen people for hypertension,
diabetes and obesity (the list changes depending on
location.
GO!
• When teaching, we look for:
– Large groups of village doctors (rural primary care
doctors and nurses)
– Every chance we get to get people participating in
education
– Chances to go to churches to provide health
education about a topic important to the community
– Opportunities to host Carnivals of Health, which help
children learn basic health tips (Thanks to Lori and
Chris Bajkiewicz)
Go! Surgery
• Surgical teams can be a great blessing
– Only perform procedures that you do at home
– Plan to do less than you normally do at home
• Translation
• Education takes time
– Share your knowledge with other physicians
• Cochlear implant project
– Great chance for surgical CME – sharing new
knowledge
Go!
• Remember that we are task oriented
culture
• We think about what we will do
• Many cultures are more relational than
ours
– Think about tea-time
– Keep coming back and keep in contact
Look for opportunities to touch people!
Finish!
• Important to Debrief the team
– Share memories of what God did, who is he
his, etc.
– Talk about what will be missed, what won’t
– What shall we tell our friends, our church?
– Start the process of thinking what next?
•
•
•
•
Advocacy for the ministry partner?
Return trip?
Gather resources for the next team?
Keep in contact with a friend?
Finish
• If you have had a medical clinic and
hundreds of people come to Christ
– Consider a discipling and teaching team to go
and help the church.
– Example:
• Nochislan, Mexico April 2009
– 70 member church
– Over 380 people made professions of faith
– Who in the church is ready to disciple that number of
people.
Finish!
• Never forget to communicate with your
partner
– What were the blessings of having a team
– What were the challenges
– How can we do this better together next time?
Remember: God’s work
should be done God’s way