"Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed."
Psalm 82:3
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"Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed." Psalm 82:3 |
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The horrifying effects of the current civil war in Burma - fear, destruction, poverty and death - leave many IDPs with fighting for survival as their only goal. Basic healthcare is unattainable or unaffordable for most of those who are struggling to provide food for their families or on the run in the jungle. However, proper hygiene and healthcare are essential to ensure survival and hope for the future. Therefore, Partners has developed two specific programs that work to ensure the healthy growth and development of refugee children and IDPs.
Through CHECK (Child Healthcare: Educating Caregivers & Kids), all the refugee children that Partners support receive initial check-ups to determine their health and nutritional status. Common treatable illnesses, such as fungal infections, dehydration, respiratory infections and worm infestations, are immediately addressed and medications administered. Subsequent follow-up visits are then used to evaluate the success of treatments and to track more difficult illnesses. Dental checks are a part of this program and hopefully eye checks will soon be incorporated as well. In addition to providing healthcare, this program also seeks to educate and equip the caregivers and children in their homes. Much of what we see could be eliminated through education on how to prevent certain diseases and illnesses in the first place.
While healthcare in the refugee camps is scarce, medical support in areas of IDPs is virtually non-existent and the consequences are evident. In 2006, a Backpack Health Worker Team reported that one-in-five children will die before their fifth birthday and one-in-twelve women die from delivery related complications. To combat these statistics Partners has implemented LAMB (Life Abundant for Mothers & Babies); a maternal health training program that aims to put skills, education and resources into the hands of IDPs in Burma. The program specifically targets medical staff, such as Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs), midwives, medics and other healthcare workers. We also distribute basic birthing kits, containing cotton gauze, gloves, soap, cord ties, a plastic sheet and a sterile scalpel, which assist in reducing complications from infection during labour and delivery. In the future, Partners hopes to initiate women's health education for teenage girls and young women, in conjunction with the LAMB program.
In addition, Partners funds nine medical clinics operating within Karen State, Burma, that provide urgent medical care for those who do not otherwise have access to basic healthcare. Furthermore, Partners supports dozens of relief teams working inside Burma who administer on-site medical care for IDPs entangled in the ongoing civil war.
When asked what their three most important concerns are, caregivers and village leaders almost always include health or medicine. Partners' healthcare programs are working to fulfil this need for the people it loves and supports.
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A Campaign of Brutality,
the new report by FBR (3.1 MB)
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