Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Five Activities for your Health Ministry

Empowering the people to take care of their health is a great strategy for any organization or church health program. It is not like the one-and-done big time medical missions common today. This strategy focuses on prevention which is more cost-effective and has greater impact to the community.

Here are five activities that the church can do to improve the community's health status:

1. Health Forum and Workshops

The church can host a forum on pressing health concerns in the community. This can be an educational forum to teach practical ways on how people can take care of their health. During this rainy season, the church can sponsor a Dengue Information drive in the community with practical tips on how to search and destroy mosquito breeding grounds.

Capacity building workshops and trainings for BHWs, mothers and volunteer health workers can also be sponsored by churches. This helps improve the skills of the people in taking care of their own health. I saw this when I was invited to teach mother, newborn and child health to a successful community-based health care program in Compostela Valley.


2. Vaccination

The church can partner with the local barangay in its vaccination program. An example would be the recent campaign for a Nationwide Measles and Polio Vaccination where local churches and organizations provide the venue and logistical support in the campaign. Another example is flu vaccination. As this is not routinely given for free in the health center, the church can make this one of their annual programs. The church can offer this at a cheaper price. One church in Kamuning, QC even offered flu vaccination for free to around a hundred adult members of the community.


3. Advocacy Programs

Advocacy is an activity with the purpose of persuading leaders to make policies or allocate budget that will benefit the greater good. The church can lead in prayer rallies and advocacy walks that will involve the community in persuading their community leaders to choose what is beneficial for them. In one barangay in South Cotabato, the captain was persuaded to issue a Barangay Ordinance prohibiting minors from buying cigarettes in the store after the church led the community in several dialogues with the barangay leaders.


4. Regular Health Monitoring  

Non-communicable diseases are the new epidemic that affects even middle-class and low-income families. Free BP checks and quarterly sugar (FBS) screening can easily be done before worship service starts on Sunday morning. Mega-churches and big congregations can schedule this as a Saturday church program in the community. Many evangelical churches are doing this to benefit the community.


5. Food always in the home or FAITH.

This is the name of a vegetable garden program by a faith-based organization. It uses the backyard lot of a church as a community vegetable garden where the whole community is encouraged to plant vegetables in the garden and the produce is free for the whole community. The program also teaches backyard home gardening with the church providing the seeds for free.


The health spectrum ranges from preventive to curative care. Researches has been proven that the church can have a great impact in Primary health care and the prevention of diseases. (See my next post on this topic.)

What I listed are just five activities that any church or organization can do to improve the health of the community. I have seen this work in some churches, so it can definitely be done. What other health programs do you think your church/organization can do?


 

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