INTRODUCTION TO SHORT-TERM HEALTHCARE MISSIONS

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INTRODUCTION TO SHORT-TERM HEALTHCARE MISSIONS
Michael Soderling, MD Peter Yorgin, MD
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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

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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 722 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 516 Crowds gathered also from the towns
  around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those
  tormented by evil spirits, and all of them were
  healed.
• PaulActs 149Acts 288
• So if we follow in the footsteps of Jesus and the
  saints

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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 long-term
  partnership?

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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!

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GET READY Website

• Determine if a website can be of help to the team
• Mission information
• Team application
• Team folder
• Team tasks
• Team report

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G
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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
• Servants heart

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Set!

• Team meetings
• Weekly for 6 weeks
• Weekend
• Team bonding
• Time for prayer
• Education
• SFINC
• About the region and people.
• Team structure
• Expectations

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Set!

• Supplies
• Medications
• WHO Model Lists of Essential Medications
• http//www.who.int/medicines/publications/essentia
  lmedicines/en/
• Buy them there
• Buy them here
• Team medications
• See List on Lecture area
• Educational Supplies
• Presentations
• Plays/Skits
• Demonstration equipment

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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?

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Set!
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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 Leaders Home
• The team is entering the country
• At the Day Clinic at a local Church
• Think about your perceptions
• Before
• During
• After

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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 dont have hardly anything. We
  sure can give them a these American medications.

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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 isnt extra money available to buy
  medications.

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script

• Mike I sure wish I was going, but I am just a
  pastor. Where you are going they dont 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.

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Comments
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Take-home points

• Leave the Savior complex at home
• Seek Gods 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

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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!

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script

• Peter Come on everybody, lets 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.

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script

• Group member Should we be praying?
• Peter Yes, pray for Gods 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.

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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
  like-minded 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.

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Comments
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script

• Group member Dr, what happened after they
  detained you at the airport? Did our Partner
  Grace Incorporated get you out?
• Peter Id 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.

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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!

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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.

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script

• Mike Tells him how this incident with the
  government will affect their ministry in this
  creative access country.

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Comments
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These situations would be funny if they were not
true. Most of these stories are my early
experiences with short-term mission.
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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.

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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)

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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

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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

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Look for opportunities to touch people!
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Finish!

• Important to Debrief the team
• Share memories of what God did, who is he his,
  etc.
• Talk about what will be missed, what wont
• 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?

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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.

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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?

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Remember Gods work should be done Gods way