Skip to content
  • The Alabama Baptist
  • The Baptist Paper
  • The Alabama Baptist
  • The Baptist Paper
  • Log In
  • Subscribe
  • Renew
  • Donate
  • The Alabama Baptist
  • The Baptist Paper
  • The Alabama Baptist
  • The Baptist Paper
  • Log In
  • Subscribe
  • Renew
  • Donate
The Baptist Paper
Search
Close
The Baptist Paper
Search
Close
  • Latest News
  • Trending
  • Classifieds
  • Your state news
  • Request a free trial
  • Latest News
  • Trending
  • Classifieds
  • Your state news
  • Request a free trial

Pediatric surgical ministry focuses training on local medical professionals across Africa

  • September 14, 2021
  • Tracy Riggs
  • Featured, International News, Latest News, Medical Issues, Missions
(Photo courtesy of BethanyKids)

Pediatric surgical ministry focuses training on local medical professionals across Africa

It’s been about 20 years since the work of an American surgeon in East Africa provided the inspiration behind an initiative to help alleviate the suffering of children with major medical needs.

The surgeon worked in Africa in the 80s and 90s and stressed the need for qualified medical missionaries to assist children born with complex conditions that require early surgical intervention, explained Peter Lublink, executive director of the nonprofit BethanyKids.

BethanyKids came out of that experience and currently exists as a group of Christian medical professionals working to transform the lives of African children and their families through surgery, education, ministry and training health professionals.

Transforming lives

“If you gave them surgery early, the whole course of their life would be transformed,” Lublink said.

BethanyKids trains pediatric surgeons from across Africa, who then go back to their home communities where BethanyKids continues to provide support.

“Whatever the family can pay or if there’s a national insurance plan they can afford, great! They’ll pay for it. But whatever they cannot afford, we pick up the difference,” Lublink said. “The bottom line is that we don’t want any child to be denied care because he can’t afford it.

“We try to make sure that by saving one child’s life, we are also transforming that child’s life and that child’s community.”

BethanyKids doesn’t try to fit the needs of a community or family into what they already offer. Instead, they work to meet needs that are discovered.

“I would say we are very ‘people centric,’” Lublink explained. “When surgeons are trained and return home, we really depend on them and their local expertise to shape any program. So our program in Ethiopia and our program in Sierra Leone is going to look very different.

“Our goal is to invest in those surgeons to make sure they are well-trained, offered continued training, fairly compensated, and then from there, if they have program initiatives they want to launch, we do whatever we can to back those.”

Partnering with others in-country

Lublink shared how one Zambian surgeon said his government will pay the full cost of surgery expenses, but they don’t cover diagnostic tests. A family has to wait months to confirm that their infant has a congenital challenge that, if treated sooner, would have been a less extensive and safer surgery. Beginning in 2021, BethanyKids is covering the costs of the diagnostic testing in Zambia for children.

Lublink contrasted Zambia with Kenya. BethanyKids discovered a residential school with 300-plus orthopedically challenged students, all using wheelchairs, crutches or other assistive devices. The BethanyKids surgeon said there were no medical professionals, wheelchair technicians, nurses or therapists.

After providing trained personnel in those areas, they saw the school also didn’t have wheelchair-accessible washrooms, so they renovated those.

Furthermore, each “house mother” cared for around 40 students, most with incontinence issues. Laundry, showering and personal care were overwhelming.

BethanyKids hired two laundry professionals and bought equipment to run a laundry facility in an empty room in the school, freeing up about 30% of the house-mothers’ work, allowing them to focus on the well-being of children.

Meeting one other need in that Kenyan school involved God’s intervention.

From patient to manager

Years before, a Samburu native (nearby and similar to the Masai tribe) was born with spina bifida. Believing she was a curse, her family tried to poison her. She spent her life with other family but was always soaked in her own body fluids due to incontinence related to her condition. She later wished they had killed her, and tried to poison herself, but it didn’t work.

Through God’s providence, she got connected to a church that introduced her to the BethanyKids’ founder, who helped her get surgery and the continence training she needed.

Now she runs continence management at that school, sharing what she has learned with others.

“It’s easy to forget about the needs of children, to not notice that this is transformative when it’s on the other side of the globe,” Lublink noted. “I’m hoping to identify churches and bodies of believers who will align themselves with this mission and help support these local missionary surgeons transforming the lives of children and families.”

He reflected on the old model of churches having a bulletin-board, highlighting missionaries they aligned with, prayed for and supported. His hope is that churches would be willing to support these missionaries with a deeper relational connection through BethanyKids.

“We want long-term partners … participants and not just check-writers,” Lublink said.

“We are very much a missionary organization. The difference is that instead of sending, we are locally equipping. When we say we’re Bible-believing and we’re faith-based, at the heart of it is that we try to emulate His love for us to the people around us.”

To hear a podcast interview on BethanyKids by TAB Media, click here. For more about BethanyKids and how to partner with them, visit www.BethanyKids.org.

Share with others:

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Email

Latest News

  • Online scammers steal $793K from NC church
    Online scammers steal $793K from NC church
    January 28, 2023/
    0 Comments
  • Disaster Relief teams activate quickly, efficiently to support Memphis first responders
    Disaster Relief teams activate quickly, efficiently to support Memphis first responders
    January 28, 2023/
    0 Comments
  • Ukrainian guest professor partnering with TN Baptists to aid homeland
    Ukrainian guest professor partnering with TN Baptists to aid homeland
    January 28, 2023/
    0 Comments

Sign up for the Highlights

Get all latest content delivered to your email a few times a month.
Email is required Email is not valid
Thanks for your subscription.
Failed to subscribe, please contact admin.

Related Posts

Online scammers steal $793K from NC church

A North Carolina congregation’s plans to move into a new worship center this spring have been put on hold after cyber criminals stole more than

Disaster Relief teams activate quickly, efficiently to support Memphis first responders

Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers responded to an unusual request from the state earlier this week to provide support for first responders preparing for anticipated

Ukrainian guest professor partnering with TN Baptists to aid homeland

A Carson-Newman University staffer has secured the assistance of local Baptist associations and churches in East Tennessee to aid his native country in war-torn Ukraine.

U.S. Hispanic Protestant churches growing through community, evangelism

Hispanic churches in the United States face unique challenges but are finding success in building community within their congregations and reaching those outside their walls.

Want to receive news highlights throughout the week? Sign up here!

Email is required Email is not valid
Thanks for your subscription.
Failed to subscribe, please contact admin.

About

  • Our Story
  • Our Team
  • Our Partners
  • Advertise and Promote
  • Classifieds
  • Contact us
  • Our Story
  • Our Team
  • Our Partners
  • Advertise and Promote
  • Classifieds
  • Contact us

Explore

  • State-specific news
  • Archive
  • Opinion pieces
  • Sunday School lessons
  • Persecuted Church
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • State-specific news
  • Archive
  • Opinion pieces
  • Sunday School lessons
  • Persecuted Church
  • Podcasts
  • Videos

Submissions

  • Story suggestions
  • Your Voice/Letter to the Editor
  • Photos / Videos
  • Corrections/other
  • Submission Policy
  • Story suggestions
  • Your Voice/Letter to the Editor
  • Photos / Videos
  • Corrections/other
  • Submission Policy

Subscribe

  • Subscribe
  • Renew subscription
  • Gift a subscription
  • Start a new member subscription
  • Start a new group subscription
  • Start a new subscription at the group rate
  • Hosted Church
  • Manage your group
  • Manage your account
  • Request free trial
  • Subscribe
  • Renew subscription
  • Gift a subscription
  • Start a new member subscription
  • Start a new group subscription
  • Start a new subscription at the group rate
  • Hosted Church
  • Manage your group
  • Manage your account
  • Request free trial
The Baptist Paper
Address:
3310 Independence Dr.
Birmingham, AL 35209
Copyright © 2023 TAB Media Group
  • Privacy/Terms of Use
  • Help
  • FAQ
  • Privacy/Terms of Use
  • Help
  • FAQ

Email:
news@thebaptistpaper.org

  • Latest News
  • Trending
  • Editorials
  • Archive
  • Your state news
  • Opinions
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Persecuted Church
  • Submit your news
  • Photo Galleries
  • Latest News
  • Trending
  • Editorials
  • Archive
  • Your state news
  • Opinions
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Persecuted Church
  • Submit your news
  • Photo Galleries
  • Our Team
  • Manage your group
  • Manage your account
  • Subscribe
  • Start a new subscription at the group rate
  • Advertise and Promote
  • Classifieds
  • Hosted Church
  • Donate
  • Contact us
  • Our Team
  • Manage your group
  • Manage your account
  • Subscribe
  • Start a new subscription at the group rate
  • Advertise and Promote
  • Classifieds
  • Hosted Church
  • Donate
  • Contact us

Log Out?

Lost your password?

Log In

Lost your password?

Log in

Become a part of our community!
Forgot your password? Get help
Privacy/Terms of Use

Reset password

Recover your password
A password reset link will be e-mailed to you.
Privacy/Terms of Use
Back to
Login
×
Close Panel