Back to MedicalMissions.com
Samaritan's Purse

What I wish everyone knew about international medical relief.

  2. Share
Will Rogers Will Rogers
1 0

What is international medical relief?

International medical relief can happen when there is a disaster in a country. Or it can be a supplement to the regular healthcare delivery system. A third option for international medical relief is teaching and training indigenous women and men so that they can work to build up the healthcare system in their own country

There are many countries that lack a fully functional healthcare system.

For example, the top three countries with the most need for medical relief are as follows:

  • Republic of Sierra Leone: Sierra Leone has the dubious distinction of being the worst country in providing healthcare to its citizens, with a score of 0.00 on the World Health Organizaion’s health systems performance index. There are only about 22 physicians for every million people, and about 60% of the rural population does not have adequate access to clean drinking water. Life expectancy at birth is about 54 years. For the 6 million people who live here, they need help.
  • Republic of the Union of Myanmar: With a score of 0.138/1 on the WHO health systems performance index. This makes it the second-worst country in the world in providing healthcare. Located in Southeast Asia, Myanmar is bordered by India, Bangladesh, China, Laos, and Thailand. Myanmar’s spending on health care as a part of its GDP (0.5% to 3%) is among the lowest in the world, and it receives the least amount of international aid per capita. The average life expectancy is 50 years. There are only 6 doctors for every million citizens.
  • Central African Republic: With a WHO health systems performance score of 0.156/1, the Central African Republic (CAR) is the third-worst country where health care is concerned. It is a landlocked country in Central Africa enclosed by Chad, Sudan, South Sudan, DRC, The Republic of Congo, and Cameroon. The average life expectancy is just 49 years. Sanitation problems and lack of clean water are major sources of ill health in this country.

Is there faith-based international medical relief?

Some international medical relief is purely medical, offering medical services and supplies to countries that lack adequate care and access. Other services can be faith-based and combine physical and spiritual well being.

If you are interested in faith-based international medical relief, here are a few Bible verses about healing for encouragement as you consider how you might best serve:

  • “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” —Psalm 147:3
  • “Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’” —Luke 10:9
  • “And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people.” —Matthew 4:23
  • “When the crowds learned it, they followed him, and he welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing.” —Luke 9:11

If you’re interested in faith-based international medical relief, here is a list of short-term mission trips you can go on.

Are there internships for international medical relief?

Yes! There are many options for serving in international medical relief through internships. Here are a few of the top places to research for internships.

  • Mercy Ships a ship-based international health care organization, Mercy Ships provides surgical interventions, education and capacity building, and other healthcare services through its hospital ship and related healthcare and capacity building programs and partnerships. Crew serves on the ship from as little as 2 weeks up to a number of years. Over the last three decades, over 30,000 volunteers have served on a ship.
  • Christian Medical & Dental Association (CMDA): CMDA Placement Service is dedicated to bringing together healthcare professionals of Christian faith for the advancement of God’s Kingdom.
  • YWAM: YWAM’s Ship equipped ministries are committed to reaching those who are isolated and have limited or no access to the resources that sustain and build a life. People who pay their own way, willing to sail into remote areas, work hard each day, return to their bunk onboard each night knowing they helped others discover more in life. You see such gratefulness in each of their eyes. Whether receiving a simple pair of glasses, enabling them to go to school, or back to work, immunizations, health care education, clean water technology, and other options are all part of what YWAM Ships brings.

Where can I go for a list of careers in international medical relief?

If you are considering a career in international medical relief, it’s important you know you have options. One great way to research the types of jobs you may be interested in is by going to the Medical Missions Jobs Board. There, you can check out the full job listing and you can narrow your search by filtering through various options.

How else can I help with international medical relief?

If you are not able or prepared to take a short term trip or make a career out of international medical relief, then you might consider giving financially to an organization that does work you appreciate.

  • Blessings International provides pharmaceuticals, vitamins, and medical supplies to mission teams, clinics & hospitals
  • Cure International treats conditions like clubfoot, bowed legs, cleft lips, untreated burns, and hydrocephalus. Without treatment, they will have little hope for the future. Many will die from their conditions unless Cure steps in to help. 
  • Medical Missions Outreach is a group that provides a beautiful blend of quality, ethical healthcare, and eternal spiritual care. Community outreach is effective and sustainable through local church partnerships.
  • MedSend removes the obstacles of student loan debt to allow healthcare professionals to pursue their calling in medical missions. Everyone knows that medical school can be prohibitively expensive. That is why MedSend enables highly qualified and dedicated healthcare professionals to serve spiritually and physically needy people around the world in the name of Christ. We do this by making their monthly educational loan payments while they serve.

What else should I know about international medical relief?

We’ve covered a lot in this post. I hope it’s been helpful and will serve as a reference as you consider where God is calling you to serve. Here are just a few more resources as you’re thinking about what you can do next to serve. 

These are just a few of the ways to get involved in international medical relief. I want to encourage you to keep searching and exploring the ways God wants to see you involved in His work!

Community tags

This content has 0 tags that match your profile.

Healthcare Specialties Show all (70)

Allergy
Allied Health
Anesthesia
Associate Degree and Diploma Nurses
Athletic Training
Baccalaureate Prepared Nurses
Bioengineering/Biomedical Engineering
Cardiology
Cardiothoracic
Chiropractics

Global Health Interest Areas Show all (42)

Abortion
Adolescent Health & Development
Bioethics
Children
Cholera
Church Planting
Clean Water
Community Development
COVID-19 (Coronavirus)
Dengue

Areas of the World Show all (206)

Afghanistan
Africa
Albania
Algeria
Andorra
Angola
Antigua and Barbuda
Argentina
Armenia
Asia

Ways to Engage

Domestic Missions
Global Professionals
Long-Term Missions (2+ Years)
Mid-Term Missions (3 Months - 2 Years)
Short-Term Missions (1 Week - 3 Months)

Student Opportunities

Yes - our organization offers student opportunities

Comments

To leave a comment, login or sign up.

Related Content

0
Four things you should know about justice in healthcare
Justice in healthcare can take many different forms. It is a vital subject that every provider and practitioner needs to grapple with. In this post, we’ll cover a few of the common questions that will come up over the course of a healthcare provider’s work.  We’ll look at justice in healthcare as it relates to a time of a pandemic, social determinants, mental health considerations, and health disparities that often arise and exist when there is injustice in healthcare.  #1 We must understand justice in healthcare during a pandemic. Dr. David Stevens wrote about this topic in A Christian Healthcare Worker's Response to COVID-19.  Justice in healthcare is a tough topic, but it’s compounded during a pandemic, and it quickly becomes way more difficult to discuss. Allocating limited resources raises the ethical issue of justice—how do you treat patients fairly? How do you care for people—especially when so many more people need life and death care—and quickly? Dr. Stevens offers the following advice: First, you always want to be as impartial as the situation allows. Second, do the best you can for the most people with the resources you have. Third, without enough time, personnel, supplies, or supplies, at some point you will be forced to decide who gets and who doesn’t get your limited resource. You have the moral obligation to be constantly working to get the resources you need, so you won’t have to continue to make utilitarian decisions. Lastly, be sure to continue reading for more wisdom in the area of healthcare during a pandemic. #2 We must understand social determinants of health. According to Healthy People 2020, “Social determinants of health are conditions in the environments in which people are born, live, learn, work, play, worship, and age that affect a wide range of health, functioning, and quality-of-life outcomes and risks.”  This is an issue of justice in healthcare because professionals must be committed to looking at the whole person, not just the malady. If a person is born and lives in an area with pollution, crime, violence, a poor education system, and few job opportunities, their health concerns will stem from those social determinants. Hospitals, clinics, doctors, and practitioners must be prepared to address these social issues if we want to see widespread improvements in health. #3 We need to understand mental health. Undiagnosed and untreated mental health disorders can lead to an array of serious ramifications including substance abuse, homelessness, interpersonal violence, and more. Ensuring that patients can access healthcare is vital. This might look like hiring community health workers to help navigate difficult systems or accepting patients who are uninsured or underinsured. Helping those who have difficulty navigating complex healthcare systems is a way to ensure that there is justice in healthcare. #4 We must consider health disparities. Another way to focus on justice in healthcare is to concentrate efforts on eliminating the health disparities we see that are based on race in the US. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Community- and faith-based organizations, employers, healthcare systems and providers, public health agencies, policymakers, and others all have a part in helping to promote fair access to health.”  The population health impact of COVID-19 has exposed longstanding inequities that have systematically undermined the physical, social, economic, and emotional health of racial and ethnic minority populations and other population groups that are bearing a disproportionate burden of COVID-19. According to the National Institutes of Health, although significant progress has been made in narrowing the gap in health outcomes (NCHS, 2016), the elimination of disparities in health has yet to be achieved. Despite overall improvements in health over time, some health disparities persist.  For example, while national infant mortality rates decreased overall by 14 percent from 2004 to 2014, Native Americans and Alaskan Natives have an infant mortality rate that is 60 percent higher than the rate for their white counterparts (HHS, 2014) and in 2013, infants born to African American mothers experienced the highest rates of infant mortality. Sadly, African Americans were 30 percent more likely than whites to die prematurely from heart disease in 2010, and African American men are twice as likely as whites to die prematurely from a stroke. Addressing these persistent health disparities in every way that you can is another way to fight for justice in healthcare.  There are so many more issues facing us when it comes to justice in healthcare. However, trying to learn and start to address these four areas, from how we handle these issues in a time of a pandemic, social determinants, mental health considerations, and health disparities, we’ll begin the process of creating a world where there truly is justice in healthcare.
1
Five questions about being a missionary doctor
Have you ever thought about being a missionary doctor? If you have, odds are good you’ve quickly jumped from thinking about being a missionary doctor to asking these common questions.  In this post, I want to give you details on the role of the missionary doctor. I’ll cover four of the most common questions from what a missionary doctor is, what a missionary doctor does, we’ll look at some missionary doctors who are currently serving, I’ll cover how missionary doctors make a living, and what’s often required to become a missionary doctor.  Question 1: What is a missionary doctor?  According to Reach Beyond, a Global Missions Health Conference exhibitor, a missionary doctor is: Someone who has earned their medical degree and can practice medicine.  The ability and desire to live and work overseas Sensitivity to cross-cultural issues A willingness to work with local partners A tolerance for uncertainty Imagination to see and explore opportunities that may arise A desire to mentor and coach other medical professionals The ability and desire to raise missionary support and/or be self-funded A commitment to serving long-term in the mission field A willingness to learn the local language Question 2: What does a missionary doctor look like? Missionary doctors can look very different. You might find them living anywhere in the world. They may live and work anywhere from a jungle clinic to a state-of-the-art facility in the middle east. The missionary doctor may be a male or female and from any country. In short, if you have the skills, education, and experience—you can be a missionary doctor! Question 3: Who are some missionaries currently serving? There are many missionary doctors serving all over the globe. I’ve highlighted a few of them below.  Dr. Tim and Kathy Rice: You can read about Dr. Tim Rice and Nurse educator Kathy Rice about their hospital and service in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Tim is the medical director of Vanga Evangelical Hospital and continues to serve as a doctor on the faculty of the School of Medicine at Saint Louis University. Kathy directs the nursing school as a registered nurse and educator. The Rice's aim to train the next generation of Congolese doctors, nurses, and health administrators in Christ-centered, whole-person care, empowering them to use the limited resources available to restore life and health across the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Dr. Jon Yoder: Dr. Jon Yoder is the resident doctor at a hospital in Mattru Jong, Sierra Leone.  The hospital belongs to the national church of Sierra Leone which is a United Brethren global mission. Sierra Leone lies on the west side of Africa on the Atlantic Ocean. The average life expectancy is 45 years old. It is most known to Americans for the tragic war in the 1990s, blood diamonds, and most recently for the now resolved Ebola crisis. Every person has his or her story of how they survived during these tragic times. Many people fled the country and some went into hiding. However, Sierra Leone is now at peace and well. You can read more about Sierra Leone and Dr. Yoder. Kiersten Hutchinson: Kiersten Hutchinson has served at Karanda for the past 18 years, not as a missionary doctor, but as a physician assistant with TEAM. She describes her journey from short-term trips, to reluctance and doubt, to full-time missionary work. In addition to stories of missionary doctors, I wanted to point out Karanda Mission Hospital: Karanda Mission Hospital was established in 1961 to meet the needs of mission stations in the Zambezi River valley which were established as churches and then, as the abundant health care challenges were seen, small dispensaries/clinics were developed along with churches and finally schools. To help the clinics, the hospital was built. Karanda is in a remote area of Northern Zimbabwe nearest to Mount Darwin. Its location is approximately 124 miles from Harare, the Capital of Zimbabwe. Question 4: How do missionary doctors earn a living? Missionary doctors may earn a living in a variety of ways. For example, some doctors are paid by the hospitals they are working for. Others may have to raise all of their own support from friends, family, or sending organizations. Most will do a combination of support raising and salary from the hospital in which they serve. Additionally, some mission organizations will do their own fundraising, and doctors may only have to cover a portion of their living expenses. There are many variations to earning a living and you can find something that works for you and your needs.  Question 5: What is required to become a missionary? In most cases, becoming a missionary means you’ll have to meet some basic qualifications, such as age, education, experience, and/or faith-based requirements. Next, you’ll want to reach out to members of your community about mission work and about how you can do some independent research of your own. After finding the right fit, it's all about completing the application process, any training involved and continuing to point to God with your skills, experience, and life. I hope this post has been helpful for you in answering some of the most common questions surrounding becoming a missionary doctor. 

A member of MedicalMissions.com community

MedicalMissions.com
Powered by Cause Machine. All rights reserved.