Medical Missions Outreach

USING MEDICINE TO POINT OTHERS TO THE GREAT PHYSICIAN.

MEDICAL MISSIONS POPULATION SERVED (PREVIOUS TO AND INCLUDING 2019) CENTRAL AMERICA, CARIBBEAN, SOUTH AFRICA, AFRICA, ASIA, SOUTH PACIFIC, OCEANIA, AND EUROPE. ALL AGES (INFANTS, CHILDREN, ADULTS, SENIORS, AND MATERNITY) EACH YEAR MMO WORKS WITH INDIGENOUS LOCAL CHURCHES AND PROVIDES NO-COST HEALTHCARE ACCESS TO THOUSANDS OF INDIGENT AND UNDERSERVED PERSONS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES. HEALTHCARE SERVICES INCLUDE: HEALTH PROMOTION, DISEASE PREVENTION, HEALTH EDUCATION, AND BOTH PHARMACOLOGICAL AND NON- PHARMACOLOGICAL TREATMENTS WITHIN THE DISCIPLINES OF MEDICINE, SURGERY, DENTISTRY, OPTOMETRY, AND PHYSICAL THERAPY. EACH CLINIC INCLUDES A PHARMACY, BASIC CENTRAL SUPPLY, AND LABORATORY WITH CLIA (CLINICAL LABORATORY IMPROVEMENT AMENDMENTS OF 1988) WAIVED TESTING. ALL PATIENT ENCOUNTERS INCLUDE COMPASSIONATE, HOLISTIC HEALTHCARE, INCLUDING THE OPPORTUNITY FOR SPIRITUAL COUNSELING PROVIDED BY MEMBERS OF THE INDIGENOUS LOCAL CHURCH. THE TEAMS COMPRISE HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS, NON-MEDICAL VOLUNTEERS, AND STUDENTS FROM ACROSS THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA, AS WELL AS LOCAL VOLUNTEERS FROM THE COMMUNITIES WHERE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED. TEAMS SET UP IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS, COMMUNITY CENTERS, OR CHURCHES, AND THE EVENT IS WIDELY ADVERTISED BY LOCAL HOSTS. EACH MEDICAL MISSION BRIGADE (TRIP), ON AVERAGE, IS 8-10 DAYS LONG. THE MEDICAL CLINIC IS CONDUCTED MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY, AND FRIDAY IS A NON-CLINIC DAY. OUR TEAMS ARE CAPABLE OF SEEING APPROXIMATELY 1,500-3,000 PATIENTS THROUGHOUT THE WEEK (DEPENDING UPON TEAM SIZE AND COMMUNITY RESPONSE).

SPECIAL PROJECTS VITAMINS FOR VILLAGES PROGRAM MMO SEEKS TO PROVIDE THE GIFT OF HEALTH TO AT-RISK INFANTS IN THE COUNTRIES VISITED BY MMO. LIQUID INFANT VITAMIN DROPS FOR ITS TINIEST PATIENTS WILL PROMOTE STRONG TEETH AND BONES, IMPROVED VISION, HEALTHY BLOOD CELLS, INCREASED BRAIN DEVELOPMENT, HEALTHY SKIN, AND INCREASED IMMUNITY AGAINST ILLNESS. IN ADDITION TO RECEIVING VITAMINS, EACH CHILD RECEIVES A PHYSICAL EXAM, AND MOTHERS RECEIVE MATERNAL HEALTH EDUCATION. EYEGLASS RECYCLE PROGRAM MMO HAS ENCOUNTERED THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD WHO EXPERIENCE EXTREME ECONOMIC, LIFE, AND WELFARE LIMITATIONS DUE TO POOR VISION. THROUGH A STRONG PARTNERSHIP WITH LOCAL BUSINESSES, SCHOOLS, CHURCHES, AND INDIVIDUAL DONORS WHO SERVE AS COLLECTION BOX HOSTS, MMO HAS BEEN ABLE TO PROVIDE OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE VISION SCREENING, CARE, AND GLASSES TO CHILDREN AND ADULTS PROVIDING THEM THE TREASURED GIFT OF IMPROVED SIGHT. WE REGULARLY HEAR RESULTS INVOLVING IMPROVED SCHOOL PERFORMANCE, JOB SECURITY, AND QUALITY OF LIFE. PATIENT ADVOCACY PROGRAM INTEGRAL TO MMO'S MISSION IS PATIENT ADVOCACY-THE EDUCATION AND ENCOURAGEMENT OF THE PATIENTS WHO SEEK TREATMENT. MANY TIMES THESE PATIENTS HAVE HAD SYMPTOMS FOR MONTHS OR EVEN YEARS BEFORE THEY HAVE THE RESOURCES TO SEEK HELP. THE SAME DIAGNOSES FOUND IN THE U.S. ARE ALSO FOUND ON THE FIELD, JUST FURTHER ALONG IN THE PROCESS. THINGS LIKE UNCONTROLLED DIABETES AND HYPERTENSION, DERMATOLOGICAL CONDITIONS, MUSCULOSKELETAL PAIN, ALLERGIES, AND URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS. SOMETIMES THERE ARE MORE INVOLVED CASES SUCH AS CHINKINGUNYA, DENGUE OR ACTIVE PARASITIC INFECTIONS. ONCE THE PROBLEM HAS BEEN DIAGNOSED, MMO SEEKS TO EDUCATE, TO OFFER BOTH PHARMACOLOGICAL AND NON-PHARMACOLOGICAL TREATMENTS, AND TO ENCOURAGE PATIENTS TO FOLLOW UP WITH LOCAL HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS. REARICK SURGICAL CENTER (RSC) SINCE 2010, MMO HAS HELD ANNUAL SURGICAL BRIGADES IN CENTRAL AMERICA. WORKING IN COOPERATION WITH A LOCAL PUBLIC HOSPITAL IN EL PROGRESO, YORO, HONDURAS, MMO PROVIDES PRE-OP EVALUATIONS, SURGERY, AND POST-OP CARE TO PATIENTS. BECAUSE OF THE DESPERATE NEED FOR SURGICAL CARE IN THIS AREA, MMO (IN CLOSE COOPERATION WITH MISION BAUTISTA TEAM HONDURAS) HAS BUILT A PERMANENT SURGICAL CENTER IN EL PROGRESO- THE REARICK SURGICAL CENTER- WHERE VOLUNTEER SURGICAL TEAMS ARE SENT TO AID THIS COMMUNITY AND THE SURROUNDING AREAS, OFTEN PROVIDING CARE FOR PATIENTS WHO HAVE BEEN WAITING OVER A YEAR FOR A STANDARD PROCEDURE. THE REARICK SURGICAL CENTER WAS OFFICIALLY OPENED IN JANUARY 2021. THE RSC IS ADMINISTERED BY A PERMANENT ON-SITE PHYSICIAN WHO PROVIDES CONSULTATIONS, SCHEDULES CASES, AND COORDINATES WITH TEAMS OF HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS FROM THE UNITED STATES WHO WILL PROVIDE THE NEEDED PROCEDURES. CLAUDE AND BARBARA HUMBERSON WOMEN'S HEALTH CLINIC OF TANZANIA AFTER HAVING CONDUCTED SHORT-TERM MEDICAL BRIGADES WITH FAITH BAPTIST CHURCH OF MOROGORO, TANZANIA FOR SEVERAL YEARS, OUR MINISTRIES BEGAN PRAYING ABOUT A MORE PERMANENT PRESENCE IN THIS COMMUNITY. AFTER MUCH THOUGHT, PRAYER, AND RESEARCH, WE DETERMINED IT TO BE IN THE BEST INTERESTS OF MMO, THE LOCAL CHURCH, AND THE LOCAL COMMUNITY TO BUILD A WOMEN'S HEALTH CLINIC. OUR EXPERIENCE IN THE COMMUNITY HAS SHOWN US A LACK OF EDUCATION, A NEED FOR SPECIALIZED CARE, AND COMPASSION FOR THIS MARGINALIZED GROUP. STATISTICS REVEALING THE LACK OF CARE AVAILABLE IN THIS AREA ARE OVERWHELMING. DUE TO COVID-19 TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS, SHORT-TERM TEAMS WERE TEMPORARILY POSTPONED. TEAMS WILL RESUME VISITING THE COMMUNITY IN 2022, WHEN WE WILL MAKE A FORMAL ANNOUNCEMENT TO THEM ABOUT OUR INTENTIONS TO OFFER PERMANENT HELP. WE PLAN TO UNVEIL ARCHITECTURAL RENDERINGS OF THE PROJECT AND ERECT A PLACARD ON THE FUTURE SITE TO COMMUNICATE THE DIRECTION OF THE PROJECT. WE ALSO PLAN TO BEGIN RECRUITING PERSONNEL IN 2022. OUR DESIRE IS TO BRING AN OBSTETRICIAN/GYNECOLOGIST OR FAMILY NURSE PRACTITIONER (WITH WOMEN'S HEALTH EXPERIENCE) AND A MIDWIFE TO THE TEAM. BY PARTNERING WITH THE CARING STAFF FROM FAITH BAPTIST, WE HOPE TO TREAT THE WHOLE PATIENT AND PROVIDE MUCH-NEEDED HOPE AND HEALING TO THE COMMUNITY OF MOROGORO. AS DEVELOPMENTS HAPPEN IN TANZANIA AND HONDURAS, WE CONTINUE TO LOOK FOR OVERSEAS PARTNERSHIPS WITH LONG-TIME MINISTRY PARTNERS SO THAT WE CAN ESTABLISH ADDITIONAL PERMANENT-PRESENCE SITES FOR INCREASED OPPORTUNITIES TO MEET NEEDS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR AND SUPPORT UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES CONTINUALLY.