medical aid Archives - Cross International

Baby Yeimi’s Life-Saving Journey

September 29, 2023 by Cross International

How Your Support Rescued a Guatemalan Child

The red and white vehicle bounces up a narrow, deeply rutted dirt road in the remote highlands of Guatemala.

Across the twin doors at the rear the word “AMBULANCIA” is spelled out in large block letters. Along the way it passes through some small villages, but for the most part this mountainous region is lush, green, and very rural.

After over an hour navigating the heavy-rain scarred roads, the ambulance finally arrives at its destination–Yeimi’s house. At two months old, little Yeimi weighs less than seven pounds. She is at risk of suffering from malnutrition, which could have life-long consequences.

The ambulance, dispatched from Cross International’s local partner, Hope of Life, is carrying a nurse who’s here to evaluate little Yeimi and determine the best way to help her and her family.

The nurse, Hosmary, meets Yeimi’s mother, 18-year-old Mayra, and gently picks up Yeimi, checking her over. The examination reveals that Yeimi is suffering from a cleft palate that makes it very difficult for her to breastfeed. Thankfully, Yeimi seems to be otherwise healthy and should make a swift recovery once she gets the nutrition she needs.

Staff from Cross International and Hope of Life help carry little Yeimi to the ambulance, and of course Mayra comes too.

After a long and bouncy ride the ambulance delivers Yeimi and her mama to the Hope of Life hospital. There she undergoes a more thorough evaluation by a doctor and an action plan is developed to ensure that this precious little girl can grow up healthy and strong.

In the coming weeks and months medical staff will closely monitor Yeimi’s progress as she is provided the nutrition support she needs as well as surgery to correct her cleft palate.

Additionally, her mom Mayra will receive training, education, and resources to ensure that she is fully equipped to care for her baby daughter in the months and years ahead.

Thank you for being a part of baby Yeimi’s story. You may not have been riding in that ambulance with her, but it’s only because of the faithfulness and generosity of Cross supporters like you that her medical rescue was made possible!

Resilient faith, hopeful strength in Haiti during COVID-19

May 14, 2020 by Cross International

“The biggest weapon we have against COVID-19 is prayer. We have an opportunity to care, to love, to use our God-given abilities for His glory. That’s where I’m standing. That’s what I am fighting for.” These are the words of Gladys Thomas, Founder and CEO of Cross International’s ministry partner Foundation for the Children of Haiti, which is home to Hope Hospital, two orphanages, three schools, and a technical academy.

Logistically, things look different at the foundation these days. With COVID-19 impacting Haiti, Hope Hospital, which was built with generosity from Cross donors, made the hard decision to close their outpatient clinic–its main source of income–in an attempt to keep people safe.

What has remained constant is Gladys’ optimism and spirit to answer God’s call to serve His children.
Every night, Gladys sits at her sewing machine making cloth masks and washable gowns for the hospital staff. She knows Haiti can’t rely on government assistance, and she considers each handmade mask she passes out on the street a direct gift from God.

With schools closed, Gladys and her team are working hard on a platform that allows students to learn online and maintain a schedule. An internet connection is hard to come by in the area, so they’re using every iPad, phone, and hotspot they can find to offer limited learning opportunities.

Gladys continues to encourage her teachers, students, and parents with words of hope and innovative solutions.
“We may have to take some steps back in our learning, but we will eventually come back better. We may feel like we are in the pit, but there is pressure under that pit that will propel us forward, higher,” she says.

The orphanage houses 111 children, some very young, and others with severe disabilities. The 32 staff members remain on campus to care for the children’s needs. On the limited occasion staff has to leave campus to go to the market, they practice strict hygiene–from wearing masks and gloves to using hand-washing stations and taking showers before reentering the orphanage. As of now, there is enough food for the children through the end of May.

Gladys tells her staff that God’s plan is not for us to suffer but for us to prosper. This, too, shall pass.
Gladys embodies Cross International’s spirit and mission to continue to transform the circumstances of vulnerable children around the world for the glory of Jesus. We’re helping our ministry partners adapt to each new challenge, but we can’t do it alone. Please consider joining us in giving today to help us meet their unprecedented needs.

COVID-19’s impact on our ministry partners and how you can help

April 16, 2020 by Cross International

Usually, we bring you statistics about how your giving has made an impact across our ministry partnerships. Today, our stats tell the story of how urgently your giving is needed by spotlighting a few partners. Amidst a global pandemic, COVID-19, ministries typically open to the community are closing their doors to service in order to help stop the spread of the virus. Organizations are forced to lay off workers to preserve funds, and food, medical supplies, and resources are running low. Now more than ever, our partners need your generosity and your prayers.

IN GUATEMALA

200 elderly, 100’s of children
450 workers were laid off at Hope of Life in Guatemala. 250 staff members continue to care for more than 200 elderly and many children: in the orphanage, more than 100 children with special needs, and a hospital full of malnourished individuals. They estimate their food supply, which normally feeds over 4,000 people annually, will last four weeks, and medicine will last for only 10 days.

278 children
Almost 100 children live in a family-style orphanage at Casa Bernabé in Guatemala, and 197 children from the community attend school here. The gates are closed to ALL non-residents, including cleaning and kitchen staff, teachers, and administrators. They face shortages of meat, cleaning supplies, and medicines. Items that can be found are often double or triple the normal price. Casa Bernabé receives no public funding and funding has sharply decreased since the pandemic.

IN NICARAGUA

160 children + family members
Arms of Love in Nicaragua serves over 160 vulnerable children and their large families. They have purchased additional food to feed their children for three weeks, and stores are selling out of food and medical stock quickly.

IN UGANDA

900+ young girls
More than 900 girls participate in the Project Princess Initiative program in Kampala, Uganda. Many are orphaned and live with elderly grandparents, who are highly vulnerable to the virus. This forces families to move, causing disruption, distraction, and most impactfully–school dropout. Family incomes are suffering as the economy shrinks and work stops as a result of lockdown.

IN ZAMBIA

2,400 villagers
At Kachere Development Programme (KDP) in Eastern Zambia, there is an urgent need for more clean water systems to support 2,400 villagers. Local Chiefs continue to ask for immediate assistance for clean water and WASH (Water Access, Sanitation, and Hygiene) training to help stop the spread of the virus.

IN HAITI

4,000 students
Divine Shelter Schools (DSS) is a network of 16 school locations that serve over 4,000 students in vulnerable communities in Haiti. Schools have been closed now for two weeks, and leadership is drafting a plan to create a life-sustaining feeding program for five schools that serve the poorest and most rural communities in the school network.

We are seeing a pattern with the partners we serve across the world: supplies are running thin, staff numbers are low, and your support is needed now more than ever. Cross International and our local partners are working together to identify needs, create plans to meet those needs, and adjust as the crisis unfolds. Our plans not only support immediate needs but integrate into the longer-term recovery and stability. As we remain focused on God’s sovereignty, we invite you to support this crucial and urgent work by giving today!

From hidden to healed: The impact of medical aid in Malawi

March 30, 2020 by Cross International

When she giggles, it’s as if someone is blowing bubbles around the room. It starts slow and light, and before you know it, everyone nearby is captured by the sound. She plays soccer on grassy fields, dotes on–and fights with–her baby brother, and loves the color red, a testament to her boldness. Her name is Success, and her eyes reveal the strength and determination of a soul much older than an eight-year-old girl.

Cross International met Success not long ago in the halls of our medical aid partner CURE Malawi, a 58-bed teaching hospital. She was there in hope of a life-changing diagnosis and surgery. We were there to create a platform to share the gospel as a tangible expression of why healing matters to God.

At only eight, Success had already endured years of hardship. Every day at school, her classmates ridiculed and tormented her because she looked different, and her teachers remained silent. They looked right past her electric smile and only saw the abnormal rotation of her lower leg. To avoid bullying, Success would hide among local shops waiting for the school day to end so she could return home. She fell behind and the light within her grew dim. Success’s parents found out she was skipping school, and instead of getting angry, they felt compassion for their hurting daughter. Guided by their faith that God can move mountains, they enrolled Success in a new school led by a pastor where the value of diversity was taught and discrimination was not allowed. Like most parents, they fought for Success to have every opportunity available and prayed like warriors for healing.

After years of misdiagnoses and poor treatment, Success and her family were referred to Cross International partner CURE Malawi, where she finally received the correct diagnosis and, more importantly, hope for a cure. They learned Success had Blount’s disease, a growth disorder that causes her tibia to angle inward that would require a painful surgery to correct.

As spunky and fearless as ever, Success was eager for surgery. On that life-changing day, doctors straightened her leg, fit her with a frame, and predicted that she would be walking without assistance in just 20 days. Determined to heal, the athletic little girl resiliently powered through physical therapy, sticking with it even when it was painful.

Today, Success walks, runs, and sometimes nearly flies, on two straight legs. She attends a school she loves with friends that can’t get enough of that bubbly laugh. Success’s parents truly believe in the power of prayer and witnessed God change their daughter’s life through the ministry of Cross International and its local partner, CURE Malawi. Join our Thriving Kids initiative to give more children like Success the services, medicine, surgery, and healthcare they need to giggle, play, learn, and grow.

The life-changing numbers behind our medical aid ministry

March 25, 2020 by Cross International

“Without health care, how can children reach their full potential? And without a healthy, productive population, how can societies realize their aspirations?” Anthony Lake, UNICEF Executive Director

At least half of the world’s population cannot obtain essential health services, according to a new report from the World Bank and WHO. For almost 100 million people, out-of-pocket health care expenses are high enough to push them into extreme poverty, forcing them to survive on just $1.90 or less a day. At Cross International, we know that resolving health issues is critical for other services like micro-enterprise training to be effective. That’s why medical aid will always be an important component of the services we provide through our work with local ministry partners around the world.

In 2019, with the support of donors like you, Cross International medical aid ministry made a life-changing impact for thousands of children and their families around the world.

2019 medical aid impact

4144 children rescued from health-threatening situations

54 medical staff across multiple countries

$76 million worth of supplies shipped in overseas medical containers

43,129 gifts in kind provided to clinics, children, and families in need

Read more about our perspective on medical aid and how you can join us by giving generously to the ministry of Cross International and its many local partners throughout the world, who provide services, medicine, and healthcare to those who need our help.

Medical Aid partner spotlight: Guatemala’s Amigos Por La Salud y La Vida

March 23, 2020 by Cross International

Imagine your life without the ability to go to urgent care or swing by a pharmacy to pick up necessary medicines.

For many throughout the world, medical treatment is free, but the medicines they need are unaffordable. Nearly 2 billion people have no access to basic medicines, according to the World Health Organization. When children and families are continuously ill, their entire lives are impacted. Attending work or school, supporting a family, maintaining relationships, and having hope for a bright future is a constant challenge that feels impossible to achieve.

When it comes to medical aid, Cross International has a clear perspective on the importance it plays in our overall mission to transform the poor and their communities materially and spiritually for the glory of Jesus Christ. We understand that resolving health issues is critical for other supports, like education, clean water, and housing, to be effective, and it’s why medical aid will always be an important component of the services we promote and advance through our work with local ministry partners around the world.

Working closely with local ministry partners is crucial to the success of our programs. They best understand the needs of their neighbors and the type of support that will be most effective. Our partners are deeply rooted in their communities, providing sustained support that is often key in tackling systemic underlying issues surrounding medical needs.

For more than a decade, our strategic ministry partnerships in Guatemala have helped children and families affected by poverty and abuse. One of Cross International’s largest gifts-in-kind recipients is Amigos Por La Salud y La Vida (Friends for Health and Life), an organization dedicated to providing food and medical services to fill the gaps in Guatemala’s overburdened health system. Cross International helps the organization stock the pharmacy shelves of clinics and hospitals, providing free medication to those in need. Cross International also gives donations of food to help support feeding programs that serve the 30,000 patients that visit each clinic per year, many suffering from malnutrition.

Using our holistic approach to partnerships, Cross International also comes alongside Amigos Por La Salud y La Vida to determine the most important indicators to track in providing more efficient and effective care. We are working to develop a needs-based approach to medicine and medical equipment distribution that will help us know which programs to expand and improve.

Long-term partnerships with local organizations like Amigos Por La Salud y La Vida are the hands and feet of the work we champion around the world. Through the support of generous believers like you, our local ministry partners are strengthened and empowered with hope to transform their communities with the love of Christ.

The example of Jesus: a healing touch for the hurting

March 5, 2020 by Cross International

A healing touch—that’s how so many people were introduced to the compassion of Jesus when he walked on earth. In the Bible, gospel stories show how Jesus was moved time and again to touch and heal those who were physically hurting: the blind, the lame, the lepers…even those at the point of death and beyond. He understood the toll of pain, and he used his ability to minister to people’s bodies as a way to introduce them to the ultimate healing he could provide their souls. This biblical example guides our work in the area of medical aid and healthcare services.

In Luke, chapter 10, Jesus told one of his most remembered parables, of one person being moved by compassion to help another in pain. The healing touch in the parable came from the good Samaritan, someone who didn’t have any relationship with the wounded man. They had never met, and the circumstances of their day would have actually created quite a distance between them, socially. But despite that, the Good Samaritan felt not only empathy for the other’s pain, he felt a responsibility to care for him. Jesus described this man tenderly dressing the wounds of the injured man, bringing him to a place of safety and rest, and paying for his ongoing care to ensure he would find his way back to health. The beautiful image Jesus creates in the story is one of sacrificial giving and true concern for a stranger.

Through His stories and His example, Jesus calls us to reach out to the world around us, offering hope and meeting others’ needs as we are able. Just as Jesus was attentive to the physical ailments of those around him, we believe it is our responsibility to understand the medical and health challenges of those we serve and to respond in compassion. It doesn’t require changing the world; it’s as simple as seeing the pain in someone’s eyes and moving forward in love. Often, those in deepest need of our help may be strangers to us, living in places of the world with challenges far greater than those we face. Even in these cases—and perhaps especially in these cases—we believe in following a simple motto: “When you can, help.”

We invite you to join us in responding to those in need of medical aid and physical healing, following Christ’s example of compassion. Would you pray for those facing disease and illness in areas around the world where barriers to healthcare are often insurmountable without the help of others? Pray that God would send the care and medicine they need. As you are able, we also invite you to join us by giving generously to the ministry of Cross International and its many local partners throughout the world, who provide much needed services, like medicine and healthcare, to those who need our help.

Our Philosophy: Strategic, Integrated, and Compassionate Medical Aid

February 27, 2020 by Cross International

In everything we do, we seek to serve the whole person: physically, mentally, socially, and spiritually. Whether addressing the needs of a vulnerable child, the challenges facing a family in poverty, or the issues preventing a community from thriving, we deal with specific problems with the understanding that each issue interacts with and impacts others. In this series, we focus on one specific facet of the complex challenges facing those in need around the world.

In seeking to help those in deepest need, few issues are more challenging than health and medical conditions. According to the World Health Organization, half of the world’s population lacks access to essential health services. In the developing world, the barriers to healthcare are discouraging. Availability of healthcare services is limited, physically reaching healthcare providers can be difficult, healthcare workers are inadequately trained, and the cost of medical services is very high. These barriers are intimidating–even for someone in good health.

Unfortunately, most of the world lives with these barriers. Almost 800 million people worldwide spend at least 10% of their household budget on healthcare for someone in their home. Caring for a sick child or loved one would motivate anyone to spend sacrificially to help them get well. This same dedication forces many people around the world to face tremendously hard decisions. In fact, for almost 100 million, those health expenses thrusting them into extreme poverty.

From our experiences in areas of deep need around the world, we understand that resolving health issues is critical for other services to be effective. The most thoughtful educational or vocational training programs will stall if students aren’t well enough to learn. Efforts to provide clean water and nutritious diet are also tightly interdependent with the medical issues in a home or community. This is why medical aid will always be an important component of the services we promote and advance through our work with local ministry partners around the world.

We believe medical aid for those in need should not only provide treatment, but also include disease prevention and health education. Treatment rightly focuses on existing conditions needing compassionate intervention. But sustained good health requires battling preventable diseases before they occur. Through healthcare education and sanitation best practices, we can promote the ongoing health of families and communities. We also believe in working closely with local ministry partners who best understand the needs of their own communities and the type of support that will be most effective. These partners are deeply rooted in their communities, providing a sustained support that is often key in tackling systemic underlying issues surrounding medical needs. Finally, for a thriving community, we believe it is critical to integrate medical aid efforts with other programs promoting educational, social, and spiritual well being.

These beliefs guide our three main approaches to medical aid. First, we provide ‘in-kind’ donations of medicines and medical supplies for those who may receive a medical exam or consultation only to find that the medicine they need is not available in their area or too expensive to purchase. Our local ministry partners help us identify essential medicines that are needed most, and Cross International does our best to solicit donations of those crucial supplies to provide to our local partners who serve the most vulnerable. These local partners may run medical clinics themselves, or they may provide them to regional medical network partners who also serve those who are in need. Second, when our ministry partners run medical clinics as part of their overall programming, we often support those operations. Many times, these services are not only for children in our partners’ care, but also for the community around them. Finally, as we support the vision and planning of other local partners, we encourage them to always consider medical aid and ministry in their scope. We help them understand the role of health-promoting services in their overall program success, and we help them navigate the process of assessing or developing this aspect of their ministries.

Medical aid challenges are broad-ranging and widespread, but the impact is as individual as every life that is changed through this work. As we advance services like these, we’re encouraged by the stories and faces of those children and families touched by a healing hand or strengthened by a life-giving medicine. Our goal of transformed lives is only possible when people are able to grow and thrive physically. If you haven’t yet joined us, we invite you to be a part of this exciting and meaningful partnership.