Abortion: Recent Episodes
MedicalMissions.com
Mentors are instrumental in the professional and personal growth of healthcare professionals. However, mentoring relationships often fail to realize their full potential. Attendees will be encouraged and equipped to initiate mentoring relationships that provide both mentor and mentee with a rewarding experience.
In this session, It will seek to help guide you on how to respond to God’s Command and Commission, The quest for discovering and following God’s will and purpose for one’s life is often an illusion to many children of the Living God, Many believers resorts to imitating others and or live a hypocritical phantom life as they are tied down to daily engagements and undertakings of everyday life, It is hoped that discovering the reason for living your life with purpose is made easier. You will discover the purpose for which God design you and gain the confidence to fruitfully be where you belong, through the power of the Holy Spirit. You will be guided through a biblical process and principles to seeing exactly God’s intent for your unique being and person, as Gods design, where you will discover that It all began with God before the foundations of the earth. Ever since, before the fall of humanity, God has you in mind, and he designed you for a purpose and through a process, but as a result of the departure of humans from God, through disbelief, you became blind and were kept ignorant of His plans for you. However, you will discover that His Deep love and Great Mercy, God called you to salvation, you became a new creature and adopted as His Child, hence He qualified you, by being a new creature in His image, He desires for you to return and rediscover His plan and purpose for your life As He God Intended. Responding to Gods Command and Commission, is a call to be ready, Dressed for service fully equipped and Lacking in nothing as you Respond through Obedience, based on a biblical Principles, These herculean task by helping you identify your uniqueness within the body of Christ, and to enable you walk confidently and victoriously where you belong in the program of God through the enabling power of the Holy Spirit. Finally, through the Scriptures and the Power of the Holy Spirit, You will be exposed and guided to God’s Command and Commission, That you begin to instantly manifest the reality of your purpose for living, Emblemed and empowered with full of Zeal, Passion and Fruitfulness, Genuinely ready for all the good works God has designed you to accomplish – Loving God with all your heart, soul and strength and loving others through your service of obedience to his Commission, Praying, Evangelizing, Discipling, Equipping and living a lasting fruit to the Glory of God. Our focus will be what it does take to be dressed, ready for service from your call to salvation to your call to service, Exploring your Meditational life, Family Life and a life of Obedience to His Command and Commission. AS YOU RESPONDING TO GOD’S COMMAND AND COMMISSION
Are you comfortable asking people for money? Do you understand the critical areas you must address if you are going to ask people to invest in you? This session will give you an understanding of the basics in fundraising that is fundamental to anyone in ministry. You will learn 5 critical things you must do in order to raise your own support. There is a solution to the obstacle of educational loans which often prevent many from going due to the amount of money that must be raised – MedSend. Additionally, you will understand how to qualify for a MedSend grant and what the Board is looking for in those who apply. Finally, you will gain and understanding of what you need to be doing right now if you are hoping to go to the field soon, next steps.
This session will consider case studies of biomedical research in mission contexts, derive best practices in biomedical research that enhance the work of mission institutions, and describe how to get involved in biomedical research in faith-based settings. Presentation Slides: https://bit.ly/gmhc2022_marktopazian_biomedicalresearchandfaith
Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) face significant challenges to their health and well-being that are unique due to lack of necessary resources including food, water, sanitation, shelter, security, and healthcare. Caring for people in these situations requires an understanding of their unique needs as well as having realistic goals regarding what can and cannot be done for them. Our experiences in providing healthcare for the victims of disasters in Congo, Indonesia, Pakistan, Myramar, Afghanistan, Honduras, Nepal, Kurdistan, and Turkey – both natural and manmade – highlight the need to be well prepared when serving in these difficult situations. We are called to serve “the least of these,” and the victims of disasters and crises certainly qualify. Often these events, though causing much hardship and suffering, create the possibility for doors and hearts to be open to the message of Jesus that otherwise would be closed. We must be both willing and well prepared if we are to serve well when we are called to respond to those in need.
God painted His heart for the Nations throughout the pages of His Word, from Genesis to Revelation... If we live our lives, spend our money, eat/drink, exercise, pray, and practice medicine without catching this vision, we're missing out on the greatest masterpiece ever created! We create a false dichotomy of domestic healthcare and that which is international. God doesn't see it this way and neither should we.
We live in the most amazing days since Jesus walked the earth. The global church is sprinting toward the finish line of the 2000-year Great Commission race, and by God’s grace, our generation may be the one to finish it. In this session, Douglas Cobb of The Finishing Fund will explain the global effort to get the gospel for the first time to the world’s last few unengaged people groups and will present the amazing promise of Matthew 24:14 that the completion of the Great Commission will open the door to the return of Christ.
The missional landscape has changed. The recent global events, the shifting distribution of Christians, and the realities of what God is allowing; are presenting a whole new missional landscape. What then are the new structures, approaches, and strategies that are proving effective for missions in our days? This will be shared with a special emphasis on the emerging role of medical missions and the strategy for partnerships. https://bit.ly/gmhc2022\_florencemuindi\_ourcurrentmission
The missional landscape has changed. The recent global events, the shifting distribution of Christians, and the realities of what God is allowing; are presenting a whole new missional landscape. What then are the new structures, approaches, and strategies that are proving effective for missions in our days? This will be shared with a special emphasis on the emerging role of medical missions and the strategy for partnerships.
A medical practitioner panel from the CMDA Commission on Human Trafficking will discuss indicators of human trafficking in adults and children, root causes of exploitation, the effects of the pandemic, and tools healthcare providers can use to identify and treat victims.
In today's uncertain world, patients are dealing with more and more stress and anxiety that ultimately impacts their health. Patients sometimes have "hidden unhealed triggers" that can lead to physical impairments. III John 2 states "Above all brethren, I desire you to prosper and be in Health, even as your soul prospers." In this session, the participant will learn how to "tend to their souls" and learn to identify areas of brokenness that patients are dealing with such that they are equipped to help patients tend to their souls, in an effort to propagate physical, emotional and spiritual health.
As a health care professional on the mission field, the task of language learning is both essential and complicated. We say that language learning is a high value and priority for ourselves as missionaries, and yet it often is the first thing to take a back seat in life and ministry. Why is that? How can we do better? With over 15 years of experience in educating, training, and coaching missionaries in language and culture learning, Dr. Mullen will cast a vision for what it takes to truly become “fluent” in your target host language. She will offer biblical, theoretical, and practical advice for missionaries and missions leaders alike on how to prepare, execute, and continually improve communicative competence in a second language and cross-cultural setting.
Our residency and training programs prepare us for professional service. Might it make sense to give heightened attention to preparation for full time kingdom service following professional training? Join Rick, Lance, Kelsey, and Chad as together we explore the need and potential for a new equipping model for long term kingdom service. For senders and those seeking to be sent: all medical, dental, and administrators, join the conversation as we explore foundational spiritual formation, life on life discipleship as we seek to be the missionaries here and now that we want to be then and there.
In view of a changing world context, what is the future of medical missions? Does the traditional mission hospital have a place in today's world? Where does medical missions fit into globalization and urbanization and increasing populations where there is high restriction on religion? What are healthcare strategies that will work in the 21st century? This session will review the history of medical missions, where we are today, and what are the new additional approaches that will meet needs and open doors for the Gospel.
Some mission experts estimate that up to 90% of young people who consider missions cease to pursue it because of various fears and obstacles, including the fear of fundraising. This session will help participants: 1. Identify various obstacles and fears relating to fundraising 2. Consider ways that God can help us overcome these barriers 3. Become aware of best resources and training materials used to help missionaries build and maintain a full and engaged prayer and financial support team 4. Know what questions to ask about support raising with possible mission agencies when evaluating where and how God will have you serve
Have you longed to integrate your Christian faith into your patient care – on the mission field abroad, in your work at home, and during your training? Not sure how to do this in a caring, ethical, sensitive, and relevant manner? This “working” session will explore the ethical basis for spiritual care plus provide you with profession, timely, and practical methods to care for the whole person in the clinical setting.
Strategic indigenous medical training to impact the Church Planting Movement and the Kingdom of Heaven.
God's timeline is different for each of us. This session will look at the particular challenges and blessings of entering medical missions in "Round Two."
Clear communication is essential in any effective healthcare environment. Working in another language adds a whole new layer of complexity to the communication process. Learning another language can seem like a daunting task, especially if you had a negative past experience with a foreign language, or it can be viewed as an exciting adventure. This session will focus on practical tips that engage your internal motivations leading to appropriate language proficiency for kingdom impact.
About 25 years ago, while sharing an early morning cup of coffee with my dear friend and practice partner, family physician John Hartman, MD, he asked, “Walt, how come we don’t bring our faith to work with us more often?” It was a question the Lord used to convict me of the fact that although my personal relationship with God was the primary and most important relationship in my life, more often than not I tended to leave Him at the door when entering the hospital or medical office. The question was the catalyst for this talk: Spiritual Interventions in Patient Care.
Research findings, a desire to provide high-quality care, and simple common sense, all underscore the need to integrate spirituality into patient care. It is highly ethical for healthcare professionals and healthcare systems to assess their patients’ spiritual health and needs and to provide indicated and desired spiritual interventions. Clinicians and health care systems should not deprive their patients of the spiritual support and comfort on which their hope, health, wellbeing, and longevity may hinge.
Before you get started, I must share this caution from Stephen Post, PhD: “Professional problems can occur when well-meaning healthcare professionals ‘faith-push’ a patient opposed to discussing religion.” However, on the other side of the coin, “rather than ignoring faith completely with all patients, most of whom want to discuss it, we can explore which of our patients are interested and who are not.” Simply put, a spiritual assessment can help us do this with each patient we see. We can potentially gain the following from a spiritual assessment:
- The patient’s religious background,
- The role that religious or spiritual beliefs or practices play in coping with illness (or causing distress),
- Beliefs that may influence or conflict with decisions about medical care,
- The patient’s level of participation in a spiritual community and whether the community is supportive, and
- Any spiritual needs that might be present.
Several fairly-easy-to-use mnemonics have been designed to help health professionals, such as the “GOD” spiritual assessment I developed for CMDA’s Saline Solution:
G = God: − May I ask your faith background? Do you have a spiritual or faith preference? Is God, spirituality, religion or spiritual faith important to you now, or has it been in the past?
O = Others: − Do you now meet with others in religious or spiritual community, or have you in the past? If so, how often? How do you integrate with your faith community?
D = Do: − What can I do to assist you in incorporating your spiritual or religious faith into your medical care? Or, is there anything I can do to encourage your faith? May I pray with or for you?
However, this and other spiritual assessment tools fail to inquire about a critical item involving spiritual health: any religious struggles the patient may be having. A robust literature shows religious struggles can predict mortality, as there is an inverse association between faith and morbidity and mortality of various types.
Sir William Osler, one of the founding professors of Johns Hopkins Hospital and frequently described as the “Father of Modern Medicine,” wrote, “Nothing in life is more wonderful than faith…the one great moving force which we can neither weigh in the balance nor test in the crucibIe - mysterious, indefinable, known only by its effects, faith pours out an unfailing stream of energy while abating neither jot nor tittle of its potence.” You can experience that driving force of faith when you apply these principles of spiritual assessment in your practice of healthcare, thereby allowing you to minister to your patients in ways you never imagined possible, while also increasing personal and professional satisfaction. One doctor recently shared with me, “Ministering in my practice has allowed God to bear fruit in and through me in new and wonderful ways. I can’t wait to see what He’s going to do in and through me each day. My practice and I have been transformed.”
A Partnership with long term missionaries, Indigenous evangelists and a short term medical training team in one of the most persecuted areas in the world brings light to the darkness.
Family physicians, nurses and primary care providers regularly encounter “extracurricular” situations when practicing in developing countries especially in sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and clinical needs, a “golden platter of opportunities” sort-of-speak. New estimates for 2014 show staggering gaps in SRH and basic clinical services fall far short in developing nations with gaps between countries regions. Yet SRH is significantly underrepresented in medical and nursing education, and in continuing medical education (CME) programs in some developed and most developing countries. Grab your gear for this session will describe clinical, cultural, systems and contextual realities of SRH and clinical unmet needs in developing countries, zooming on the Middle East. You will find out that “you can do it” regardless of your clinical background. This session will introduce you to tools to equip yourself culturally, clinically and from a public health perspective. You will present opportunities for short and long term interventions.
Short Term Missions in the "Spiritually Darkest" areas of the world are becoming a challenge as access is being denied to western missionaries. The Lord has provided a model to equip indigenous believers with medical skills that will provide opportunities to share the Gospel. These believers know their language and culture that allow access to evangelize and transform communities in the name of Christ. Dr. Tom McKechnie founder of Teach To Transform and Kingspride Hammond founder of Alabaster Project in Ghana will discuss the impact of this model as an evangelical tool.
This session will have many practical tips on how you can bring your spiritual faith into your everyday clinical care. These Bible-based principles have been taught around the world in the author's "Saline Solution," "International Saline Solution," "Grace Prescriptions," "Workplace Grace," and "Going Public with Your Faith" books, conferences, and small-group courses. After this session, you'll be able to share Christ and His Grace with each patient you serve and each colleague you meet.
Awareness and Education on human trafficking: This session will describe the importance of raising awareness among healthcare professionals regarding the issue of human trafficking, and educating them to recognize potential victims of human trafficking within the healthcare setting. The session will provide educational resources on human trafficking as well as resources that will enable the participant to raise awareness of human trafficking among his/her colleagues. Engaging local survivors: This session will discuss the importance of utilizing local survivors of human trafficking in efforts to raise awareness about human trafficking as well as educating healthcare professionals regarding the types of human trafficking that occurs within their location. The session will also emphasize the importance of incorporating survivor input as hospitals and clinics begin to develop response protocols for human trafficking. Developing an institutional response: This session will emphasize the importance of developing a full and multidisciplinary response to victims of human trafficking encountered by a healthcare institution such as a hospital. The session will provide various resources for developing an institutional response including a toolkit for developing a response as well as sample protocols that have been developed. Responding as a community: This session will focus on the various aspects of how a local community should respond to both international and domestic victims of human trafficking in terms of prevention, identification, and aftercare. Special attention will be given to the development of a dedicated clinic that specializes in the healthcare of victims of human trafficking. Responding globally to human trafficking: This session will describe current short term overseas medical mission opportunities available through CMDA that specialize in the care of human trafficking victims. The session will also explore the unique issues surrounding the development of an adequate response to victims of human trafficking within a mission healthcare setting.
As healthcare professionals learn to utilize spiritual interventions in patient care, they quickly learn they do not have enough time or resources to meet all of their patient's religious or spiritual needs. This session will have many practical tips on how you can be a change agent to establish a spiritual care team wherever you are called to serve as a healthcare professional. This Bible-based care system has been taught around the world in the author's "Saline Solution," "International Saline Solution," and "Grace Prescriptions," books, conferences, and small-group courses. After this session, you'll be prepared to build a team of Jesus followers to share Christ and His Grace with each patient you serve and each colleague you meet.
Being a medical missionary is not easy. Now try leading a team of them! These folks tend to be intelligent, passionate individuals with big dreams (just like you). These are often important qualities for the work at hand, but they can easily lead to dysfunctional teams, explosive conflicts and national partners who feel steamrolled. In this session we want to discuss how leaders can keep team vision focused, community life vibrant and partnerships flourishing in the midst of the crucible that is the mission hospital. This session is for everyone regardless if they are the "team leader" because every medical missionary is a leader whether they want to be or not. Here’s a bit of catnip to help you along your way.
This session will review the most common medical considerations you should be aware of before traveling on a short-term medical mission trip. I will review common malaria prophylaxis medications, immunizations, treatment of traveler’s diarrhea as well as other tips and tricks to know. This session is ideal for those with minimal international travel experience.
Short Term Missions in the "Spiritually Darkest" areas of the world are becoming a challenge as access is being denied to western missionaries. The Lord has provided a model to equip indigenous believers with medical skills that will provide opportunities to share the Gospel. These believers know their language and culture that allow access to evangelize and transform communities in the name of Christ. Dr. Tom McKechnie founder of Teach To Transform and Kingspride Hammond founder of Alabaster Project in Ghana will discuss the impact of this model as an evangelical tool.
Values and assumptions vary widely from culture to culture. This gives rise to potential conflicts and barriers in the communication process. This session looks at Not the American values and assumptions which can create misunderstandings, damage relationships, and even pose significant danger in the delivery medical treatment in a cross cultural context.
Be missional!
How do you keep up with the demands of ministry while balancing the needs of family, not to mention your own needs?
How do you keep doing more with less?
How do you protect yourself from burnout while advocating for the least of these?
How do you establish boundaries without neglecting the needs of your community?
These are some of the questions Dr. Thomas hopes to explore as he shares lessons from the field. He serves as the Medical Director at Dayspring Family Health Center and co-pastors a local church, answering a call to serve vulnerable and marginalized communities. He is married and has three teenage children. Serving his family and discipling his children are some of his top priorities. Despite the busyness and numerous challenges of ministry and family life, he continues to learn the importance of balance, boundaries, and rest.
If you are experiencing burnout or having a difficult time keeping “afloat”, this session may give you some insights on how to maneuver through the ups and downs of missional living.
Health professionals in all settings should take a history from their patient(s). National guidelines in the U.S. recommend a spiritual assessment be included with most or all patients. Yet, surveys show that over 95% of patients say that no health professional has ever inquired of their spiritual or religious beliefs. Furthermore, most health professionals indicate that they never been taught how or why to incorporate a spiritual or religious assessment into their patient history.
In this session you'll learn why a spiritual assessment is now considered a part of quality, evidence-based patient care. In addition, you'll be exposed to a number of spiritual history instruments to consider using in your patient care and you'll be exposed to options of how to utilize the information obtained from a spiritual assessment.
Finally, you'll be introduced to a small group training tool that you can use at home to facilitate the introduction of these principles to other health professionals.
In recent years there has been a tsunami of healthcare volunteers going into the developing world; both faith-based and humanitarian. Recent estimates tell us that 29% of students enrolled in medical schools participate in some type of short-term global health project prior to graduation. Dental, nursing, and allied health schools are also beginning to follow suit. This workshop will review some of the guidelines for improving global health missions and what constitutes best evidence based practice in this area. The format of this workshop will be two talks by two mission leaders – one a sender and one a receiver. Both speakers will give positive and negative examples of short-term mission teams with long-term impact. The sender talk will be from Greg Seager RN the director of Christian Health Service Corps. The receiver talk will be by Dr. Jefferson McKenney missionary surgeon and founder of Loma De Luz Hospital in Honduras.
More than half of the Middle East population, 54% are under the age of 25 including 90 million adolescents (10-19 years of age). The growth spurt challenges of the second decade of life is mounted with early sexual debut and early marriages. Consequent unintended pregnancies and child birth, the risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections and HIV/AIDS threaten the fragile adolescent still under physical and psychological development. Pervasive conflict and displacement in the region overwhelm prevailing adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH) issues and unmet needs.
National health systems and the private sector do not typically recognize nor address sexual and reproductive health (SRH) needs of young people, especially unmarried adolescents. Health care providers do not recognize nor address health risks and needs of adolescents. Evidence show that adolescent health services -if exist- are fragmented and poorly coordinated. Inherent social norms, attitudes, taboos around sexual health and discriminating gender differences hinder adolescents’ SRH health literacy and access to quality services.
What should the health sector do to transform the current approach that ignores ASRH issues? How do we respond to the urgent unmet SRH needs of the 90 million adolescents living in the Middle East?
Christians are called to love yet often times, our communities are rife with conflict and unresolved hurt. Interpersonal conflict is cited as one of the major reasons why missionaries leave the mission field.
Using concepts from Ken Sande’s Peacemakers and his personal experience working as a the Medical Director in an FQHC in Appalachia, Dr. Thomas will review …
- The cost of conflict for the individuals, the organization, and for our witness
- The difference between Peacemaking vs PeaceFaking
- Strategies to develop a culture of peace in your organization
- Healthy ways of addressing conflict and working towards reconciliation
Whether you see yourself as a leader or not, you play a critical role in determining the success of your experiences and those around you. How you plan, recruit, and execute your Short Term Trip strategy will impact your entire church/organization and any trip participants... the ripples of which you may never fully know. Don't have a Short Term Trip strategy yet? We can help you think through that as well.
Whether you are wanting to lead a trip for the first time or have done it so long that you can't remember everything you know, this session will help reduce your stress and, more importantly, increase your impact.
Every person has a worldview, a deep sense of what is real and how the world works. What we believe and value and what we do and say are shaped by our worldviews.
All cross-cultural ministry brings us into different worldviews in missions.
Our approaches to healthcare ministries whether in our home country or another are liberated and limited by (1) our own worldviews (2) our awareness of our worldviews and how they are formed and transformed and (3) our capacity to recognize and work with the worldviews of the people to whom God sends us.
By the end of this session, we will have grown in all 3 of those areas. We will leave with resources for continuing growth.
This participatory session will include learning from person reflection, discussion of Biblical stories, and the wisdom of other participants.
Spiritual formation is a way of describing the life-long journey of becoming who God created us to be. That’s the essence of being a “disciple” or learner. Our experience in healthcare ministry continues to "form" in us the ability to love God with all our heart, mind and strength and our neighbors as ourselves.
In this break out, we will collaboratively identify characteristics of a person who is “prepared” for healthcare ministry, and practices that help us cooperate with God’s efforts to form us for that work.
This session reports on focus groups conducted with 107 domestic victims of sex trafficking in which they discussed the health problems they experienced during trafficking. In addition, the session examines victims' interactions with various types of healthcare providers. The focus groups revealed that nearly all victims experienced physical and mental health problems while being trafficked, including serious communicable and other diseases, injuries resulting from violence, substance abuse, and reproductive health issues. The session summarizes data about the health problems reported by sex trafficking survivors to present a fuller picture of the health consequences that victims suffer. A majority of survivors sought healthcare at some point during the time they were trafficked. The session reports on the contact victims had with health care providers including hospital emergency wards, urgent care clinics, neighborhood clinics, women's clinics, Planned Parenthood clinics, and general practitioners. Many providers were unaware of the fact that they were treating a trafficking victim, and unaware of the force, fraud, and coercion involved in trafficking. The session discusses common physical and mental health symptoms and other warning signs that can assist medical professionals in recognizing possible trafficking victims. It also makes policy and program recommendations for medical care providers to enhance their roles as identifiers of trafficking victims. These recommendations include suggestions for interviewing possible victims and methods for helping victims obtain broader assistance, including criminal justice assistance where warranted. Other recommendations include mandatory training about trafficking in persons for healthcare providers, mandatory posting of the national trafficking hotline phone number and specialized resources to make available to victims.
The Millennial demographic is a conundrum of sorts. Millennials are those aged 19-36, and are the largest demographic group in history. They are bigger than baby boomers and they are a powerful force in society. They think and act differently than any group before them, and they are critical to the future success of every non-profit. This session is focused on non-profits who are looking to better understand how Millennials think, how they want to engage with your organization and how they give (both monetarily and with their time).
Suppose you were born in Central Thailand 60 years ago. As a teenager you found a numb spot on your arm, later on your arm became painful and finally your hand was deformed and you couldn’t feel or grip anything. You and your family were frightened. The monks at the Buddhist temple tried to help, but their expensive poultices did not help. Your family loved you, but they felt they had no alternative than to put you out of the house. You were a social outcast and would have to live a life of begging.
What is worldview? What is your worldview? What is the worldview of the community described in the scenario above?
The great majority of medical missions in East Asia takes place in Buddhist and Chinese (Confucius) contexts. Are they the same, similar or different? What obstacles must be overcome to make an impact physically and spiritually in East Asia? What must a medical missionary understand and put into practice in order to work effectively with peoples in Buddhist and Chinese worldviews? Finally, what is the unique role that medical missions can have in these contexts?
This session will feature Dr. David Leung, a family medicine doctor who has worked at Evergreen ministries in Taiyuan, China for over 15 years. He will present the Chinese worldview. I will present the Buddhist challenge.
Spina bifida is usually a devastating diagnosis in any part of the work, but it is even more grave in the developing world. Embarking upon a treatment regimen demands that the parents have full information about what limitations should be anticipated for their child. Also, the full repertoire of potential operations, needed care, and life expectancy should be discussed with the family. The mother should be advised about long term folate utilization if she anticipates continued sexual activity while being in a child bearing age. Full information will allow a better understanding by the parents of anticipated changes in the child's disposition over a life time. As the child matures, more and more information will also needed to be shared with the patient.
While embarking on a general surgical career as a worker in Africa, I found the breadth of surgical need far beyond my narrow thinking. General surgery gave way to gynecolgy, plastic surgery, orthopedics, urology, and ultimately neurosurgery as pertaining primarily to children with hydrocephalus and spina bifida. The rehab surgery has endured as my focus for the last thirty years. It has been a journey where there are few surgeons involved and where the huge needs seem to have opened a wonderful spiritual path.
Dr. Ralph Winter said that for every 100 people who made a mission commitment at some point in their lives, only one made it to the mission field. Why? For lack of mobilizers! The same can be said for lack of mentors. What is a mentor? What do mentors offer prospective long-term medical missionaries? Come to this session if you desire a mentor or if you desire to become a mentor. Before the session you may want to familiarize yourself with GMHC’s mentoring service at https://www.medicalmissions.com/community/mentoring . This session strives to honor God by helping you translate your dreams of serving as a long-term medical missionary into reality.
Health professionals in all settings should take a history from their patient(s). National guidelines in the U.S. recommend a spiritual assessment be included with most or all patients. Yet, surveys show that over 95% of patients say that no health professional has ever inquired of their spiritual or religious beliefs. Furthermore, most health professionals indicate that they never been taught how or why to incorporate a spiritual or religious assessment into their patient history.
In this session you'll learn why a spiritual assessment is now considered a part of quality, evidence-based patient care. In addition, you'll be exposed to a number of spiritual history instruments to consider using in your patient care and you'll be exposed to options of how to utilize the information obtained from a spiritual assessment.
Finally, you'll be introduced to a small group training tool that you can use at home to facilitate the introduction of these principles to other health professionals.
The Kingdom of God or Kingdom of Heaven shaped every aspect of Jesus’ ministry - - his healing, prayers, teaching and even his identity . As we follow him in health care missions, the Kingdom should also define our goals, methodologies, and ways of relating with those we serve and with our co-workers. It should fuel our hope and our perseverance.
Everyone who has been on a medical mission has some embarrassing and/or hilarious stories of cultural or language blunders. Sometimes the events are just funny. Sometimes they can seriously compromise relationships and the intended impact of the whole mission, including our Christian witness. This session offers perspective, spiritual grounding and practical tools for building healthy relationships, avoiding, or at least recovering from many of the common mistakes in cross-cultural missions.
Mission Medical: Assessing and Addressing Spiritual Needs of Patients
We'll discuss (1) why healthcare professionals have been reluctant to take a spiritual history, (2) the positive association of spirituality/religiosity and physical/mental health, and (3) several spiritual history tools to consider for use in clinical care.
Healthcare provides a unique opportunity to engage the deepest issues of life and faith alongside those who are suffering. Can you care for patients in a way that brings them before Jesus and offers them peace, healing, and wholeness? Discover how to practice healthcare as your ministry…starting even now as a student or resident.
This session will give an overview of the current picture of trafficking in persons within the United States focusing mainly on child sex trafficking, the major form of trafficking in persons within the U.S. In addition, the session will address specific ways that health professionals can become abolitionists.