Reflections on COP28

Let (climate) justice flow like a river…

Reflections on COP28

Laura-Lee Lovering, BMS World Mission’s Creation Stewardship Co-ordinator, shows us how woman across the world are disproportionately affected by environmental issues – but are also often the ones at the frontline of the climate justice fight. As COP28 begins, read on to hear perspectives on climate change from across the world.

What do you think about climate change? How is it impacting your life? There are many ways in which you might respond to these questions, depending on where you live in the world, your socio-economic status, your political affiliation or your religious inclination. Your response may also be influenced by whether you are a woman or a man. Household surveys from Global North countries over the last ten years have shown that women tend to be slightly more concerned about climate change and more willing to make lifestyle changes than men*. Meanwhile, in the Global South, women grow and produce up to 80 per cent of food for family consumption, and they have the primary responsibility for collecting water and firewood. In addition, women in developing countries are already more vulnerable to undernutrition and have less access to medical services than men**. Environmental degradation and climate change make all of these challenges harder, and the burden falls disproportionately on women.

A woman smiling in front of some greenery — Laura-Lee Lovering, BMS' Creation Stewardship Co-ordinator, has served in Peru for over ten years.

With COP28, the United Nation’s annual conference on climate change, beginning today, we have been asking women around the world about their experience of environmental problems, climate change and their effects.

Susan Blanch Alal, Justice Livelihoods Health (JLH), Uganda

How are environmental problems, including climate change, impacting your local communities, especially women?

Let me tell you about Alice, who’s been supported by JLH in Gulu. Alice says that the impact of climate change causes difficulties for a greater percentage of women than men, especially those living in the city or nearby towns. She shares how difficult it is to get firewood because of deforestation in the area, and confesses that women have been beaten by their husbands for cooking late or for asking for money for charcoal or firewood.

A Ugandan woman in a red patterned dress smiles for a photo.

Alice shares that one of the impacts of climate change is also tensions over water in her village. She says, “You will find women competing for water in a nearby borehole, because streams that women used to fetch water from to help with other domestic work have dried up, and women now mainly rely on drilled water”. The borehole water is also controlled, paid for and has hours for opening for community use, and as a result women have fought or been beaten by their husbands because of delays in collecting water. Alice says, “I remember one day when I was beaten by my husband for quarrelling at the borehole site. The lady I quarrelled with is a neighbour and she discussed the issue with her husband who reported the issue to my husband. It was a very bad experience for me and I was pregnant at that time. I imagine how many women have experienced violence due to climate change the way I have.”.

Pray with us

Please remember the wives and mothers in Uganda and around the world who are dependent on firewood and wells for the daily needs of their families, especially as these resources become more difficult to access due to deforestation and climate change. We pray for peace and collaboration in their communities.

Pray for those at risk of domestic violence, exacerbated by the pressures of climate change and poverty. Pray that God’s justice will flow, and that in the face of climate breakdown, people will still be treated with respect and dignity.

We thank God for the work of JLH in coming alongside these women in faith and in practice, helping them plant trees, construct safer stoves and even installing new community wells.

Karen Name: Naw Bah Blute Paw
Thai Name: Khun Mayuree
2nd year student in the Karen Theology Programme, Siloam Bible Institute, Thailand

How are environmental issues affecting you as a young woman and your hopes for the future?

Across Thailand and the world, natural resources and agriculture are decreasing; I see the cutting down of many trees in my home village, and even the water does not seem clean anymore.

Therefore, as a young woman, I feel it is important to preserve what God has created for us. All of us need to do our part to conserve the environment, in the best way possible.

I feel in the future that if we do not look after nature and the environment, it may not exist anymore. This is something that I think and pray about often. The added benefit of looking after the environment is the produce that we grow ourselves, which we can share with others, and it tastes delicious.
Along with my friends and fellow students at Siloam, we are trying to take care of and maintain God’s beautiful creation that he has given to us.

Pray with us

Pray for young people around the world to have hope in God for their futures and to become leaders in their communities who will pave the way in restoring the damage done to God’s creation.

We thank God for the integral training being provided to young people at the Siloam Bible Institute, helping them to see and respond to God’s love for all that he has made.

A Thai Karen woman in a pink dress smiling.

Sahara Mishra, Human Development Community Services, Nepal

A Nepali woman wearing an orange scarf and a black coat

How are environmental problems, including climate change, impacting local communities, especially women?

There are profound and disproportionate impacts of environmental problems, including climate change, on local communities in Nepal, particularly affecting women. Changes in weather patterns, water scarcity and natural disasters have disrupted agricultural cycles, livelihood diversity, health and hygiene. Women, who often play a pivotal role in agriculture, other income-generating work and household management, bear the brunt of these challenges. These environmental crises have increased their workload and exacerbated the existing gender inequalities, as women’s time for education and income-generating activities diminishes, being compelled to [invest more time] in household management.

The weather extremes, especially exposure to heat, are associated with pre-term birth, low birth weight and stillbirth. Additionally, increased natural disasters such as floods and landslides have threatened women’s safety and health, heightening the risks of their displacement, gender-based violence, losing their source of income and making them prone to trafficking and marginalisation within their own communities as well. The impact of the environmental crisis is multifaceted and multidimensional and requires gender-responsive strategies to address all the issues.

Pray with us

Women in the world, irrespective of geographical and territorial boundaries, social status or age, have been affected in many ways by environmental crises. Please join Sahara in praying that God may provide comfort, refuge and guidance to overcome the difficulties women are facing knowingly or unknowingly, through careful stewarding of creation and adaptation and mitigation responses and strategies.

Claire Bedford, BMS pharmacist, Guinebor II Hospital (G2), Chad

How have environmental sustainability initiatives impacted the local community, especially women?

The recently installed solar power system at G2 Hospital, which added on to the existing solar power available at the hospital, has enabled us to have enough energy to light and ventilate the new women’s ward that opened a couple of months ago. It’s also ensured that we can provide more consistent and reliable electricity to the maternity unit. Wonderfully, women can now always give birth with adequate lighting and they are also able to be hospitalised in a well-lit and ventilated ward. This all means a more positive and comfortable experience for women accessing healthcare at G2 Hospital.

A woman stands in the grounds of a hospital in Chad

Pray with us

Please pray that pregnant Chadian women would access pre-natal care as early as possible in their pregnancy and also come into hospital as soon as possible if there’s a problem with their pregnancy or they are in labour.

We thank God that improving the environmental sustainability at G2 Hospital also means that pregnant women and their babies can benefit from improved treatment conditions.

An important lesson that I think climate change is teaching us, is that ‘caring for the environment’ is directly related to ‘caring for people’. Or in other words, being a good steward of God’s creation also translates to loving your neighbour. ‘Green’ initiatives have often been viewed as something based primarily on a concern for the non-human elements of creation and perhaps only obliquely related to a concern for our fellow humans. Now we are beginning to grasp that what is genuinely good for ‘the environment’ is also genuinely good for us.

I hope this story will help guide your prayers for COP28. For more prayers during the course of the conference, head to the BMS Facebook page and give us a follow!

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Words by Laura-Lee Lovering, BMS Creation Stewardship Co-ordinator
*OECD Survey on Environmental Policies and Individual Behaviour Change (EPIC), 2022, 2011
^**USAID Climate change and Gender Fact Sheet, https://www.oecd.org/dac/gender-development/46460915.pdf

A farewell to Chad

Celebrating a season of mission

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This summer we’re waving goodbye to three of our mission couples serving at Guinebor II Hospital (G2). Hear from the Shrubsole, Spears and Chilvers families about God’s work in their lives and ministries, and why the next chapter is only just beginning for BMS World Mission healthcare work in Chad.

Hi Bethan and Gareth, Mel and Tom and Brian and Jackie! As you come to the end of this season serving at G2, we’d love to take you back to where it all began. What were your first impressions of serving in a Chadian desert hospital?

Gareth Shrubsole: The challenges of Chad are known to anyone who’s done any research on the country. I think what surprised us more was some of the blessings of Chad, like the fact that our children have absolutely thrived. It’s not to say that it was always easy for them, but they have really thrived and they’ve really been blessed through it, and I believe they’ll become a blessing to others, either immediately or in due course, as a result of their experiences in Chad.

Bethan Shrubsole: I think because it’s such a challenging place, the people who go there are 100 per cent invested. So you don’t find people who are just there because they like Africa. You find people who are there because they’re passionate about Africa, and about Chad particularly.

A Chadian lady has her arm around a male relative as she helps him along a hospital walkway in Chad. — As a country, Chad is ranked second lowest on the Human Development Index globally, with an average life expectancy of 52.5 years.

And how did you see those challenges of life in Chad play out amongst your patients?

Jackie Chilvers: Traditionally, our idea of poverty in the UK is when you don’t have enough of something. But in Chad, poverty exists where people only have enough for “today”. And when people don’t have stability politically, financially… when even the climate is changing, that ability to pay for what’s needed “today” can change very quickly. Sometimes it’s more subtle than what we typically think of as poverty. You might be able to get water from a well, but that water isn’t treated. You might have the smartest clothing or the most raggedy clothing, but if you get cancer, there’s precious little we can do except cut out the tumour as there’s no chemotherapy or radiotherapy available in Chad.

Were you surprised by how God ended up using you in such a fragile context?

Mel Spears: When I went out, I didn’t really know what my role [as a Public Health Practitioner] would look like, and I ended up spending a lot more time with patients in the hospital than perhaps I would’ve imagined. That was definitely very rewarding, but also very heartbreaking. [Working alongside Chadian colleague] Achta was amazing. She really cares about the patients and I learned a lot from her. It was never one-sided. Jackie or I might’ve read more about what perhaps certain standards should be, but she really had the practical experience of what actually works and what had been done in other places.

A Chadian healthcare worker dressed in maroon scrubs chats to a local woman in a headscarf with a young baby on her lap, in a mint green clinic room. — Mel, Jackie and a Chadian team of colleagues Juliet, Salima and Achta [pictured], were able to establish an on-site clinic to treat life-threatening malnutrition, as well as equipping colleagues to diagnose it and raise awareness in the community.

And what were some of the biggest encouragements?

Tom Spears: It was encouraging to see some of the nursing staff who do outpatient consulting really take on board some of the advice that others gave them and improve their way of doing things because of that.
I was encouraged by our colleague Moussa [who featured in BMS’ 2020 Harvest appeal, Operation: Chad]. He’s been there since the hospital opened and he’s a really good guy. He cares about his patients. It was interesting to get a bit more of perspective from him about larger scale issues in Chad and where some of the sticking points are. I look forward to hopefully working with him again in the future.

A British family gather for a photo with two parents and two children in front of a leafy green background. — Mel and Tom are returning to the UK to invest in further medical training, with a view to potentially returning to serve in Chad in coming years.

A Chadian practitioner sits at a desk in his clinic wearing blue scrubs and a stethoscope. — “Moussa is someone that I would really like to be involved more in the strategy of the hospital. He's someone who’s got a good head on their shoulders, and a good heart,” says Tom.

Brian Chilvers: The support from the UK was so encouraging too. When you’ve had a bad day or a difficult day – perhaps a patient is very sick or a child has sadly died – to know there are other people who are still behind you, supporting you and wanting you to go out and do the work makes such a difference. We couldn’t have been in Chad without the financial and prayer support. It reinforced the idea that I’m doing what God wants me to do.

It's clear that you’re leaving the work in Chad in some really capable hands – both those of Chadian staff and also BMS mission workers Claire Bedford and Kalbassou Doubassou. But we know the financial and prayer support of UK Christians is still absolutely critical in keeping G2 running and able to save lives.

Gareth: Please keep praying. G2 is a young hospital, it’s only 12 years old, but I can foresee its need lasting for decades. Whichever generations of mission workers and even Chadian workers pass through, it will still be God’s hospital doing God’s work. It needs to be held in prayer. It’s in a difficult, tough, place. [Head of G2 and nurse-surgeon] Kalbassou is the heart and soul of the hospital, and without Kalbassou, it wouldn’t function. So people need to continue to support BMS to support what he does, and to support what Claire does.

Tom: In the UK, the focus is often about ‘how can we improve the quality of life?’ But for most people in Chad, the focus is on survival. Actually, the cost of living has increased proportionately more in Chad than it has in the UK. Last year the cost of bread rose by 25 per cent overnight, as an example. Even in times where people are seeing their budgets squeezed, there are places like Chad where the amounts of money that affect our quality of life here affect people’s survival elsewhere.

Two Chadian healthcare professionals wearing scrubs smile as they examine a patient. — The incredible team at G2, led by Kalbassou Doubassou, still needs your vital support.

Thank you all for the incredible investment of your time, skills and lives during your time at G2, made possible by UK supporters. We’ve loved welcoming Jackie onto the BMS staff team in the UK as our new Safeguarding Lead, and we look forward to staying in touch.

Three critical ways you can continue to support the work of G2

Pray
Prayer is critical to the running of G2 Hospital. Why not sign up to Kalbassou and Claire’s prayer letters, and pray for the critical surgical and pharmacy provision you’re making possible at G2?
Give
None of the work at G2 would be possible without your generosity. Find out more about becoming a 24:7 Partner for Kalbassou or Claire.
Serve
G2 is particularly in need of qualified surgeons, paediatricians and GPs to serve alongside Kalbassou and Claire. If that’s you or someone you know, do check out the vacancies listed here.

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Interview by Hannah Watson, BMS World Mission

Harnessing the sun

The healing power of solar panels

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In a country heavily reliant on fossil fuels, Guinebor II Hospital has recently upgraded its solar panel array thanks to your generous support. BMS World Mission’s Ed Axtell shares the significance of your impact.

“The first thing I did in the morning at the hospital was to listen for the sound of the generator. It was the first thing to tell me if a child had made it through the night” – BMS World Mission doctor, Tom Spears

I can’t remember the last time I truly appreciated power or electricity. Turning the lights on, turning on the heating or connecting to the internet. Even now, I’m sitting and writing this down on a computer, and I don’t give it a second thought. The phrase ‘flip a switch’ reinforces our ‘effortless’ relationship with power: we beckon, it comes running. That’s it. But that just isn’t the case across the world, especially in Chad.

Sun setting on N'Djamena in Chad over a sandy landscape with trees. — Your support is harnessing the sun's power to bring health and hope to Chad.

Located at the crossroads of north and central Africa, Chad is 189 out of 190 in the UN’s Human Development Index (their list of the world’s most fragile states). It’s a tough country to build your life in. Life expectancy is only 52.5 years and on average, children only receive 2.5 years of education. The most sobering figure is that one in nine children in Chad will die before their fifth birthday. N’Djamena, the capital of Chad, has really suffered from a lack of power. With its rapid growth and many people installing air-conditioning, it’s not uncommon for people to be without electricity for five to six hours a day. To combat this, the Government has moved to providing its citizens with diesel-fuelled generators – however this is far from a perfect solution. Besides the environmental impact of burning fossil fuels, there’s also the effects of noise pollution and the respiratory problems this can cause. In a country that, on average, has 264 days of sunlight a year, attention has moved to solar power. And it’s your incredible support that’s making this green revolution possible at Guinebor II Hospital (G2).

G2 has always relied on a combination of diesel generators and its small existing array of lead acid solar panels, however even this system has its issues. The solar system only had 12KW of charge and the invertors it used were intensely complex, meaning that no-one based in Chad could fix them if needed. When someone required oxygen, a small diesel generator would have to be brought round to power the concentrator, as the solar didn’t have enough charge to power them. Imagine being admitted to hospital and receiving the treatment in a stifling hot room pumped full of diesel fumes! Drugs and medication were going out of date due to the storage fridges overheating, surgeries were having to be powered by generators, babies were being delivered by torchlight and there were no fans on the wards. This might seem like a small issue in comparison, but when the temperature can hit 45 degrees, fans are a must. BMS mission workers Mel and Tom Spears describe the challenge presented by most patients choosing to sleep outside because of the heat: mosquito nets aren’t easily installed or available outside, significantly increasing the risk of malaria for the patients.

Three men praying in front of a blue curtain on a hospital ward — BMS doctor Tom Spears knows only too well the negative impact the heat can have on the patients.

The recent overhaul on G2’s solar has meant a massive transformation for the hospital – and it’s possible thanks to you. The recent project, part-funded by BMS supporters, has enabled G2’s solar capacity to increase threefold, allowing the hospital to significantly reduce its dependence on diesel generators. The whole project was also completed alongside a Chadian electrician, allowing local staff to take ownership of the project and be equipped with the knowledge and skills to repair and maintain the solar array.

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With all these improvements, it’s empowered G2 to continue to be an example for hospitals across Chad. New wards being built can now have fans pre-installed, which drastically increases patient comfort and quality of care – especially as some patients were discharging themselves early from the hospital due to the heat! Beyond comfort, it also enables the staff to be able to have greater infection control on the wards. Now, two oxygen concentrators can be run in the same ward purely off solar power. There’s no need for generators in the wards anymore, which is an incredible step forward. On top of all of this, the pharmacy now has air conditioning too (installed on BMS Pharmacist Claire Bedford’s birthday!) This has allowed G2 to significantly reduce the amount of medication being thrown out, saving money but also making sure those that need life-saving medication can get access to it, straight away.

Two pharmacists standing in front of shelves of medical supplies — Life-saving medication can be kept for longer with air-conditioning now installed in the pharmacy.

Throughout all of this, God’s timing has been so evident. As with many large infrastructure projects, the work experienced delays from the beginning, but during this time, lithium batteries became an option for the solar system, which can last six times longer than the lead acid batteries they replaced. Beyond that, the same day the new panels were installed, the oil refinery in Chad closed for maintenance. With diesel practically unobtainable across the country, without the new panels, G2 would have had to pause surgery for six weeks. God’s timing for the project meant solar power kicked in at just the right time, doubtlessly saving many lives.

Thanks to these advances and your, support G2 can continue to stand on the frontline of healthcare, supporting and empowering those that need it the most. A flick of a switch, something we take for granted — but such a weighty and treasured decision in Chad.

Thank you!

Thank you for your ongoing support for BMS work in Chad!

BMS supporters provided a crucial 25 per cent of the funds needed for the solar project in Chad, and we’re so grateful. For the latest about work at G2, stay tuned for an upcoming webstory sharing more about changes to the BMS team in Chad and how you can continue to save lives at this desert hospital. Make sure you never miss a webstory by signing up to our weekly email update today.

Words by Ed Axtell
Content Creator Apprentice, BMS World Mission

Bardaï Hospital appeal

Help get life-saving healthcare to people in Chad

Andrea and Mark in local dress, smiling in the desert sunshine. — You can help Andrea and Mark Hotchkin reach the people of Bardaï with vital healthcare.

Benjamin's life could have been destroyed without Bardaï hospital.

Benjamin was in terrible pain when he first went to Bardaï hospital: what was a minor infection at first had caused his arm to swell to twice its size and lose half its skin.

Can you imagine how frightened you’d feel, seeing your body change beyond recognition, knowing there’s no way you can work or earn money for your family while feeling so ill? And then there’s the stress of knowing that if you can’t work, there’s no way you can afford hospital treatment to get better.

It’s a terrible catch-22 that BMS World Mission workers Andrea and Mark Hotchkin have seen time and again over the last 13 years they’ve been working as doctors in Chad. But your generosity could change everything for people like Benjamin.

Benjamin with two medical staff and a bandaged arm outside the hospital — Could you give to get life-saving healthcare to people like Benjamin today?

How could my gift help?

Your £14 could provide specialist equipment like oxygen masks and drip sets to treat two children suffering from respiratory illnesses.
Your £25 could cover the cost of treatment for one person, so they don’t have to choose between caring for their family or losing their life.
Your £92 could cover the cost of one day of Andrea and Mark Hotchkin’s work providing life-saving healthcare in the Chadian desert.

Give now

Benjamin is just one of the many different patients Andrea and Mark and the team at Bardaï hospital treat every day. Your help is desperately needed to heal children with pneumonia who’ve travelled for over 100 miles across scorching desert with their families, to help people who’ve suffered brutal accidents while working on treacherous gold fields, to assist expectant mothers and, in one of the harshest environments on earth, to welcome new life into the world.

Because Bardaï hospital was there, Benjamin received emergency medical care and skin grafts, and will thankfully be able to return to work soon. Even better, the hospital was able to cover the cost of his treatment, meaning Benjamin has enough money to keep his family fed until he’s well enough to go back to work.

We’re sure that after the last few years, you’re keenly aware of how crucial accessible healthcare is. If you can give today, you can make sure this hospital can keep helping people who can’t carry the financial burden of their treatment.

Andrea and Mark Hotchkin

Wide shot of the hospital, showing three low buildings painted cream and green with a desert background of blue sky and golden sand. — Without this hospital, life in Bardaï would be disastrous. Please give today to help provide life-saving healthcare in Chad.

Bardaï Hospital appeal prayer PowerPoint

Download this short PowerPoint presentation to guide your prayers for BMS World Mission’s work in Chad.

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Your gift will help provide life-saving healthcare for the people of Bardaï, Chad.
If our appeal target is exceeded, additional funds will support work in the world’s most marginalised countries, based on where the need is greatest.

Diary of a BMS Surgeon

The diary of a BMS surgeon

The incredible work you support in Chad

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Being a surgeon has never been your standard 9 to 5 job. But when your responsibilities also include heading up a hospital’s management team and bearing witness to Christ in a Muslim-majority country, things get particularly busy! Welcome to the diary of a BMS World Mission surgeon.

Kalbassou Doubassou, BMS worker, advanced nurse-surgeon and Director of Guinebor II Hospital (G2) opens his May prayer letter with the word: “Thankful”. “Isaiah says that those who trust in God renew their strength,” Kalbassou adds. “The eagle, the lion and the cubs tire, but those who trust in him do not tire.” When you’ve had a month as busy as the one Kalbassou has just had, it’s clearer than ever whose strength you need to rely on to get by.

A Cameroonian man dressed in scrubs stands in front of some hospital buildings in Chad, — Kalbassou juggles his responsibilities as lead surgeon and Head of Guinebor II Hospital in Chad.

Kalbassou often starts his days by performing surgery – whether it’s an operation that he’s got planned in, or the emergency surgeries that he’s woken up to perform at all hours of the night. In one month alone, G2 can receive over 570 patients in its emergency department. Every mother who has a safe delivery via C-section, or patient who has surgery to fix a broken limb experiences nothing short of a miracle considering the tough circumstances that so many live in in Chad. Without the hospital, they might turn to traditional healers or risk buying medicines from unregulated street vendors, many of whom can unintentionally make their patients catastrophically ill.

Two members of medical staff in Chad chat and smile as they examine a patient.

Kalbassou’s work is carried out against a tide of challenges that come from working in Chad. May is a notoriously hot month, the peak of Chad’s scorching dry season. Temperatures inside buildings can reach up to 40 degrees, a difficult climate for anyone to work in, let alone perform life-saving surgery. Then, there’s the political instability the country has experienced in recent months. A recent newsletter from G2 Hospital shared that the country has fallen even further down the UN’s Human Development Index (a global measure of average national health, wealth and education), now ranking at 190 out of 191 countries, trailed only by war-torn South Sudan. And along with all of this, there are basic problems of accessing enough hardware and medicine for the hospital, such as getting hold of screws to fix fractured limbs.

In the midst of all this, how does Kalbassou get the strength to keep going, and to keep bringing hope? Well, even after suffering from the flu and experiencing a period of personal struggle, Kalbassou rejoices in the fact that “the Good Shepherd is always in control”. There are huge encouragements even in hardship. Two little girls, Halimé and Khadija, suffered a terrible accident when a wall fell on them as they were playing, but fortunately Kalbassou was there to help. “They received treatment and today a relationship has been created between the two families and me because of the good results,” Kalbassou writes. A situation that could have driven two families apart through despair and blame has instead united a community. And Kalbassou is determined to do more.

Recently, he treated a man who had been suffering persecution from his family owing to his decision to become a Christian. “Even those who were not happy with the salvation of their family members give good testimony about the hospital,” Kalbassou explains. “The older brother of our brother in Christ, who had persecuted him so much, thanked me for taking care of his brother and his cousin’s wife.”

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Kalbassou and a Chadian team carry out surgery at Guinebor II Hospital in Chad. — Thank you for supporting Kalbassou to carry out life-saving surgery in Chad.

It’s clear that Kalbassou sees his role as being about much more than fixing broken bones, administering anaesthetic and completing paperwork. It’s about equipping G2 Hospital to bring hope in every shape and form to those suffering. To round off Kalbassou’s busy month, he shares a story about those he and his wife support when the ward lights go off and the staff go home. “My wife and I went to a church 45 kilometres from N’Djamena where we visited a blind brother in Christ who needs a home and we committed ourselves to helping him and his elderly mother,” Kalbassou shares.

A group of staff members gather outside the gates of Guinebor II Hospital in Chad. — G2 Hospital is known as being a Christian hospital. Thank you for enabling it to be a shining light.

It’s been a busy May, but Kalbassou is praising God for everything he’s doing and teaching him. The Chadian Minister of Health has granted more land to be given to the hospital for its use. Kalbassou has passed an online orthopaedic training course. And, as a Cameroonian living in Chad, he’s learning new ways of working interculturally, too.

“In the professional context it is good to listen,” Kalbassou explains, “even if you think that the reasoning is not correct, in order to better know how to deal with the problems of your patient population.” Since taking a listening, conciliatory approach, Kalbassou has noticed there’s been less violence and anger in the way some patients respond to bad news. “Even when someone is angry about a situation,” he explains, “my intervention in a spirit of conciliation puts the person concerned in a good mood.”

Could you support healthcare in Chad?

BMS’ workers in Chad urgently need your support to continue this vital work. Could you help? G2 is looking for a number of medical professionals, including a surgeon, to join its busy team. Find out more about serving in Chad here. Or if you could give financially and pray, stay tuned for an opportunity to bring life-saving healthcare to northern Chad, coming very soon. Sign up for our weekly email update to be the first to hear how you can make a difference.

Kalbassou’s work doesn’t end as this month comes to a close – he’ll need to find new reserves of energy to do it all again in June! Fortunately, Kalbassou knows exactly where his strength comes from: “The Lord is gracious,” he says, “to those who hope in him.”

Words by Hannah Watson.

Your Harvest legacy

The gifts you gave are still bearing fruit

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Do you ever wonder what happens when BMS World Mission appeals wind down for another year? In this week’s story, you get to find out. We take you back over five previous much-loved Harvest appeals, and learn how your generosity is still bearing fruit in the lives you touched, even years into the future. From Nepal to Afghanistan and Thailand to Chad, here’s the difference you made.

2015: My Father’s House

In 2015, we shared with you the story of Ramu, a man who was paralysed in a terrible truck accident. Like countless others in Nepal, this hardworking father was told that his life was over when the accident shattered his spine. But, thanks to the incredible work of BMS occupational therapist Megan Barker, and your generous support, Ramu has gone on to live a full life that’s been characterised by hope, enabling his young family to flourish alongside him.

A Nepali family stand in front of their home. — Your support helped give Diyu and her family hope in the face of tragedy.

Picture of Alan & Megan Barker — Megan and her husband Alan work to make sure vulnerable families in Nepal get the support they need.

In 2022, Megan Barker was able to revisit Ramu’s family and share with us an encouraging update. The My Father’s House feature video was narrated by Ramu’s daughter Diya, who was then ten years old. Seven years on, Ramu’s children are still doing well at school and the family has saved enough money to buy a scooter, improving their ability to travel. They’ve also invested money in developing their home a lot more since the appeal was filmed, including creating better access to the property. “Ramu and his wife are both fit and well, and are very smiley,” says Megan. “The family are doing well.”

2017: Wonderfully Made

Back in 2017, we introduced you to Adventure Man, Captain Kindness and Mr Determined – aka Tada, Natalie and Phil from Hope Home, a BMS-supported home for children with disabilities in Thailand. Phil is settled with his foster family, and we chatted to mission worker Judy Cook to get an update on how Natalie and Tada are doing.

A Thai girl sat on a climbing frame — Thank you for supporting Natalie through our Wonderfully Made appeal in 2017!

“Natalie is continuing to do well at her special school and loves learning there. Her foster family is amazing and love her dearly, as do we all at Hope Home. On the days when Natalie comes to Hope Home, she loves to come and read to the children as they receive their physiotherapy treatment. She’s so caring!

“Tada is as active, inquisitive and fun-loving as ever. He loves to sing all songs, but especially children’s worship songs and his choice of DVD to watch is Bible stories – his favourite is Elijah! He is now able to slot into a lot more official therapy support at a regional centre, so his speech and general behaviours and development are slowly improving.”

2018: Life’s First Cry

The heartbreak of women in Afghanistan losing their babies to preventable illnesses moved many of you in 2018. The Life’s First Cry feature video took us through the snow-covered mountains of Afghanistan’s central highlands and into the homes of women like Andisha (pictured), who lost her first 11 babies to ill health. A year and a half after filming, we went back to visit Andisha, her husband Mohammed, her daughter Roya and the son she gave birth to after receiving safe birthing classes through your support. Roya, “who is kind of naughty!” explains Andisha, was just about to start school, and Navid, “who is very calm”, was just a toddler. As with any other kids, they were both enjoying playing with their toys and having fun.

A photo of a mother in Afghanistan with her daughter and son

Since helping Andisha’s family in 2018, you’ve also played a part in transforming her community through your ongoing support of BMS work in Afghanistan, bringing sanitary latrines, literacy skills and nutrition courses to her village. So much has changed in Afghanistan since our visit to Andisha’s family, but we know that one thing certainly hasn’t: the commitment and care that BMS supporters feel for the people of this beautiful but often troubled nation. You’ll have another chance to support BMS work in Afghanistan this Christmas, so make sure you’re subscribed to the BMS weekly email update so you don’t miss out.

2020: Operation: Chad

At the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, you showed incredible support for the amazing staff members at Guinebor II Hospital (G2) in Chad. Now that Covid-19 is less of a threat in Chad, the staff have been able to focus their energies on other crucial medical issues facing the community: namely, malaria and malnutrition.

A man and a woman in scrubs and masks — Brian and Jackie Chilvers have pioneered malnutrition and nursing work at G2 since joining Team Chad in 2021.

A man conducting surgery in Chad. — At the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, you raised over £300,000 for G2 Hospital in Chad.

“The biggest health concern that our neighbours expressed was worry about malaria… some of the things we heard were really heartbreaking, about how many children people have lost,” says Jackie Chilvers, who has joined the G2 team, along with her husband Brain, since Operation: Chad premiered. Fortunately, they’ve been able to help pioneer an education programme to help people understand how to prevent malaria and where medical support for those who contract it is available – whether that be at G2 or through pre-established government programmes. Jackie’s also come alongside BMS worker Mel Spears to set up a malnutrition clinic, to help dangerously ill children get back on track, and enable families to get the right help for their children.

2021: I Will Stand

Last year’s Harvest appeal marked a first for BMS, using animation to tell the stories of courageous Christians whose faces we couldn’t share. Though we couldn’t show their photos, we knew that God had counted every hair on their heads and was using their witness in powerful ways to spread his amazing gospel. You stood with believers like Z as she reached out to communities in North Africa who were yet to hear the good news of Jesus. And we’re so pleased to report that Z is still standing strong a year later, able to continue her ministry thanks to your giving and prayers.

A woman typing on a keyboard. — Z is committed to boldly sharing her faith, despite the risks.

An illustration of a woman sat a desk. — Z's daughters loved seeing their mum's story come to life.

“She said that she was well, is enjoying her role and is passionate about why she is doing it,” explains BMS Overseas Team Leader Sarah Mhamdi, who visited Z earlier this year. “She’s seeking ways to reach more people and to be able to answer more of their questions and help people grow in their faith. Please continue to pray for her own birth family that they will come to share her faith. She continues to be thankful for our prayers and support.” Supporters weren’t the only ones who enjoyed the colourful illustrations used to capture Z’s testimony. Z’s own little girls loved seeing their mum come to life through animation, and felt very proud that she had shared her story!

You’ve done such amazing things by supporting BMS Harvest appeals in the past – why not continue your streak by supporting Good Land, our Harvest appeal for 2022? Over the years, you’ve helped communities in desperate need all over the world, and this year you can help the people of Ghusel, Nepal, transform their village. They dream of good-quality education for their children, of clean water that’s accessible to the whole community, of training to help make sure their livestock stay healthy. Will you help their dreams become reality? Give now to help transform the village of Ghusel today!

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Words by Hannah Watson, Editor of Engage magazine and Laura Durrant.

The hospital, the miracle and the impossible secret

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First things first: don’t tell anyone about your new faith. It seems counter-productive, even counter-Christian, but it’s the tough choice that many new believers have to make in order to stay safe – and to help bring more people to Christ. Read on to find out how.

Ahmat* came to Guinebor II hospital (G2) because his father had badly broken his leg. They’d tried to get help elsewhere, but that had just ended up making it worse, and now he needed surgery in order to fix the damage that had been caused. Doctors at G2 told them they would have to wait for his leg to heal, and then it would have to be broken again to set the bone properly. A day’s drive from their family home in southern Chad, G2 became home to Ahmat and his father for around five months as they waited for his leg to heal.

Ahmat and his family knew they would get a high standard of healthcare at G2, but they may not have expected the hospital’s dedication to spiritual and pastoral care too. G2 is openly and proudly a Christian hospital, and prayer and evangelism form a huge part of the hospital’s ministry. Every bed comes with a New Testament on a shelf beside it, and they’ve recently had a delivery of Bibles in Chadian Arabic – the first of their kind. BMS World Mission worker Bethan Shrubsole and her colleague, Pastor Berihun*, go round to all the patients and offer to pray for them. Bethan, who is also a music therapist at the hospital, writes songs about Jesus that she sings to anyone who’ll listen. That’s how she met Ahmat – and it’s where he began to learn about his Saviour.

“I used to take my guitar and play with a group of children,” says Bethan. “Ahmat came and sat with us, and he would translate because the children only speak Arabic, and I was speaking French.”

A New Testament — There are copies of the New Testament on offer everywhere you go at Guinebor II.

Bethan slowly began to get to know Ahmat. When she and Berihun went to Ahmat’s father’s room to pray with him, Ahmat was really interested. He began to come and speak with Bethan and Berihun a few times a week, and they would read the Bible together and talk about Jesus. When it came time for his father’s surgery, Berihun and Bethan prayed for him again. And that’s when something miraculous happened. Kalbassou, BMS’ Hospital Director and surgeon, took the cast off and found his leg had healed properly, and they wouldn’t need to do any surgery. “Kalbassou said it was a miracle,” explains Gareth Shrubsole, Bethan’s husband. “No-one had expected that.” And it was this display of God’s miraculous healing power that led Ahmat to come faith in Jesus.

Workers in a Chadian hospital. — Broken bones are a very real risk to health and life for so many in Chad.

Once his father returned home, Ahmat stayed in N’Djamena, close to the hospital, with an aunt and uncle. Bethan was able to keep discipling him over WhatsApp. She and Kalbassou went to visit him, and while they were there, they met his cousin, who had a terrible case of tuberculosis. “The day before we saw her, she’d had a coughing fit that they thought was going to kill her,” says Bethan. So she and Kalbassou prayed for her, and she was able to come to G2 a few days later. After having a few weeks of treatment, her lungs had largely cleared up – which has led her to faith in Jesus.

Sadly, this isn’t the end of Ahmat and his cousin’s stories. When their families found out about their new faith, they kicked them out. It’s a tragic reality, knowing how joyful Ahmat is in his faith, but it’s not surprising. Bethan and Gareth have stories of local pastors who can only minister to new believers in secret, of a man whose family had him put in prison because of his faith. It’s why Berihun advises people not to share their faith with their families when they find new life in Jesus, at least not straight away – there’s no telling what could happen. “The aim is to keep them in their families,” says Bethan. “Not to hide their faith forever, but to slowly get their parents and their aunties and uncles acclimatised to it.”

“You want family members to say, ‘There’s something different about this person, I like the way this person is behaving, what is the cause of this change that I’m seeing?’” Gareth adds.

Two BMS mission workers — Bethan and Gareth Shrubsole are able to keep in touch with and disciple to new believers.

“The change in the person speaks for itself, and then the gospel follows up as the reason for it.” But many new believers, like Ahmat, find it impossible to keep their new faith a secret. And while it can lead to much heartache if their families can’t accept their new faith, BMS workers on the ground are there to help them process what’s happened and find new community, so that they’re never alone.

Three men praying — Believers in Chad, and across the world, need our prayer.

Bethan catches up with Ahmat regularly, and wonderfully, he and his cousin were able to find other places to stay in N’Djamena. Ahmat is in touch with other local Christians, and Bethan is there to help answer as many of his questions as she can. But Ahmat’s journey isn’t over, and he and other believers like him still need our support and prayers. So many BMS supporters raised money for G2 last year as part of our Operation: Chad appeal, which is why we hope you’ll be inspired by Ahmat’s story and want to share our 2021 Harvest appeal, I Will Stand.

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This year, we’re supporting courageous Christians living the gospel, no matter the cost. Stand with our brothers and sisters across the world and help bold believers be equipped to share the gospel, wherever they are. Encourage your church to hold an I Will Stand service, and you can help create a world where no-one has to hide their faith ever again.

*Names changed.
Words by Laura Durrant.

Operation: Chad – one year on, revisited

You’re bringing hope to people with a deadly ‘orphan’ disease

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After hearing from public health worker Mel Spears in Operation: Chad, one year on, we’re talking to her husband Tom about revelatory diagnoses, lives saved, and what being in Chad has taught them both.

Pulling back the curtain on ‘goldminer’s syndrome’

Leishmaniasis. If you’ve heard of it, it may well be because you picked up Issue 50 of Engage magazine. If you haven’t, know that the amazing discovery of new treatments for this rare ‘orphan’ illness is one of our favourite stories from 2021. “I can add something to that story as well,” says Tom Spears, with a smile. He’s catching us up on all that’s been happening at Guinebor II (G2) hospital in Chad since the filming of last year’s Harvest appeal, Operation: Chad. And the next chapter in the incredible leishmaniasis story is just one of the ways that your support of medical work in Chad has made a difference this year.

Dr Tom Spears examining patients at Guinebor 2 Hospital, N’Djamena, Chad 2020 — Tom worked as a GP before moving to Chad in early 2020.

We left the leishmaniasis story with Andrea and Mark Hotchkin, BMS World Mission surgeons in the north of Chad. They had just discovered new ways to test, diagnose and treat leishmaniasis, with no idea that news of their work would make it to the Chadian Government, resulting in a proposed treatment roll-out across all affected areas in Chad. And it’s just another example of God in his wisdom drawing strands of BMS work together that Tom and his colleagues found themselves examining leishmaniasis patients at G2.

“The doctors I was with told me this was ‘goldminer’s syndrome’,” says Tom. “They’d been taught that this was a complication of toxic chemicals used in mining.” Though Tom had never seen leishmaniasis before, the collection of symptoms, as well as new tests now available because of Andrea and Mark’s work, told him they were looking at a parasitic disease. A quick phone call to Mark confirmed all they needed to know.

“The three doctors who were there now recognise leishmaniasis,” says Tom. “And they’ve all gone on to an area of Chad where it’s much more prevalent than in N’Djamena.” Leishmaniasis may sadly be here to stay, spread by the species of sandfly that transmits it, but doctors in Chad are now better armed. Thanks to your support, medics at G2 are diagnosing, testing and treating an illness that without medical intervention sees a near 100 per cent fatality rate in anyone without natural immunity.

Leishmaniasis: the facts

Leishmaniasis has been categorised as an ‘orphan illness’ – a disease restricted to the poorest parts of the world, and considered not financially lucrative to create up-to-date medications for.
Visceral leishmaniasis (one form the disease can take) kills around 20 to 40,000 people in the world every year.
Like malaria, it’s a parasitic disease, transmitted by a particular species of sandfly.
Eight in ten people will be naturally inoculated against the disease, but visceral leishmaniasis attacks the internal organs of the 20 per cent who aren’t.
Sufferers become anaemic, feverish and eventually immunodeficient. Without treatment, the disease will almost certainly prove fatal.

When training saves lives

Tom sent his three colleagues off with the promise that they could get in touch if they encountered leishmaniasis and needed extra tests. But it’s hard to see a cohort of doctors, just trained up, leaving G2. This past year has taught the team to turn what could be a frustration into a blessing. The fact that Chadian doctors rotate around the country means these health workers can take everything they’ve learned at G2 with them, wherever they’re sent. Tom recalls reading back of over the notes of a patient who had been left in the hands of a colleague he’d been training. “He’d done just a great job of treating him,” says Tom. “And I was seeing in front of me a patient who was dramatically better… it was really cool to think that he might not have been able to do that had he seen this patient a year ago.”

Kalbassou and Tom examining patients at Guinebor II hospital in Chad. — Watching Hospital Director Kalbassou on ward rounds has been a great learning opportunity for staff.

A year of reflection

While God might have planned for the Spears to end up in Chad, it had never been a country much on Mel and Tom’s radar. One year on – how has their sense of calling to Chad been sharpened? “One of the big things that I feel differently about now is that there [was lots] I felt frustrated by when we first arrived,” says Tom. “I don’t necessarily feel less frustrated now, but I have a lot more empathy for the complexity of the situation. It’s easy to come into a situation and see things that need to change and to criticise them, but with a bit more time, and perspective, you start understanding some of the reasons behind why things can’t change easily.” Mel and Tom’s heart for Chad is big enough to embrace the things that take time, that require prayer, and that are not straightforward. They’ve switched up a task-oriented culture for a relational one, and are building the connections that pave the way for change.

A patient is wheeled towards the operating theatre at Guinebor II hospital. — Staff at Guinebor II hospital are praying for another surgeon to join the team.

Looking back on how much has happened at G2 in the space of a year, it’s really exciting to think about how much scope there is for continued growth. But the team can only continue with your support and prayers. They’re praying for a surgeon to join Hospital Director Kalbassou Doubassou, and for enough capacity to make the heavy workload more sustainable at the hospital. They’re also praying that more manpower on the team would create time for training and learning. As they pray, why not pray along with them? Sign up to receive prayer letters from the Chad team, so that you’re always up to date with the latest from Mel, Tom and their colleagues at the hospital.

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What you achieved

You raised an amazing £301,823 for Operation: Chad back in 2020, whether that was through coming together with your church family to hold a wonderful harvest service, or because you gave generously as an individual, inspired by the amazing healthcare work happening at G2. We’re so thankful for you all. If you missed the appeal, it’s not too late to give. Learn more about Operation: Chad right here.

Words by Hannah Watson
Editor of Engage, the BMS World Mission magazine

Operation: Chad – one year on

What’s been happening at G2?

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This is Operation: Chad, one year on. We’re taking you on a tour of some of the exciting new projects you’ve made possible at Guinebor II hospital

You wouldn’t have realised it from watching the Operation: Chad feature film, but BMS World Mission workers Mel and Tom Spears had really only just set foot on Chadian soil when we visited them in February 2020 with film cameras in tow! We were there to shoot our Harvest appeal, excited to tell their stories, and to see how their skills and experience would contribute to the vibrant life of Guinebor II (G2) hospital. And it wasn’t hard to do – it seemed to us as though Mel and Tom, along with their colleagues Bethan and Gareth Shrubsole, had all been there much longer, despite having only arrived in January 2020. Tom, who had worked as a General Practitioner in the UK, was already being called from patient to patient and treating people with conditions ranging from diabetes to cerebral malaria. And Mel was already imagining the shape her important work in public health might take, beginning with the community health of the villages that had grown up on the doorstep of G2.

The Spears family, pictured in Chad against a leafy backdrop. — Mel and Tom Spears moved to Chad in January 2020.

Knowing how much they had been able to do in the space of a few short weeks back then made us even more excited to check in with them. From new training sessions to a successful malnutrition treatment programme, we heard from Mel and Tom how the hopes and plans they shared with us have become a reality, one year on.

Cultural shifts

Mel’s plans for her work at G2 began by speaking to Achta. You may well recognise Achta from the Operation: Chad film – she’s the practitioner in charge of early years vaccinations. Achta’s experience of Chadian culture and the hospital’s current practices, coupled with Mel’s background in public health nutrition, proved the perfect breeding ground for new ideas. “I started seeing how malnutrition was being managed and finding out from Achta what she’d like to see change,” explains Mel. Together, they carried out a survey exploring infant feeding practices. It confirmed that many new mothers were being handed down a potentially dangerous practice of giving their babies too much water along with formula and breast milk. Sadly, the practice often stems from the fact that formula milk is expensive for so many Chadian families, and so parents add more water than is safe to make it go further.

Achta, a practitioner at Guinebor II hospital in Chad — Achta is part of the wonderful hospital team featured in Operation: Chad.

If babies continue to be given water, they lose the ability to regulate the amount of water in their cells, becoming almost comatose, Tom explains. They’ll soon recover if the practice is stopped – but if not, it will sadly prove fatal. “There’s a massive need for real investment in kind of a cultural shift, and how to change behaviour around that,” adds Mel. Extra training for the hospital’s midwives has already been proposed, so they can send mothers off with good advice from day one. And if children do start to grow up malnourished, with a lack of proper nutrients in their diet, Mel and Achta have been tackling that too.

Tackling malnutrition

Tom tells me that almost 30 per cent of children under the age of five in Chad are underweight, the seventh highest score in the world. So little Moussa’s case sadly wasn’t unusual. He arrived at the hospital clearly malnourished. His swollen limbs and diarrhoea displayed all the signs of the vicious cycle that is created by malnutrition: a nutrient-poor diet which leaves a child susceptible to infections that could become life-threatening. Luckily, after training put in place by Mel, medical staff can use a test to diagnose malnutrition that is as simple as measuring the circumference of the child’s upper arm.

Achta's clinic at Guinebor II hospital in Chad.

Peanut paste created as part of a public health programme at Guinebor II hospital, Chad.

A newborn baby at Guinebor II hospital in Chad.

Moussa improved slowly as he received a nutrient-rich peanut supplement for malnutrition, and treatment for his infections. His swelling reduced and Mel and Achta were delighted when his weight began to increase again. Moussa’s family befriended others, sharing meals together on the hospital grounds. And they also became part of the community programme, with its weekly check-ups. “Achta recently sent me a photo of Moussa and his rounded face was unrecognisable,” says Mel.

Achta laughing with a mother at the clinic, Guinebor II. — Children showing signs of malnutrition are now referred to Achta.

The difference the team are already making means you can’t help but feel excited for the future at G2. The team are looking forward to welcoming BMS nurse Jackie Chilvers, who will be giving additional support on the maternity wards. And having a team come alongside her has encouraged Achta too. She’s felt happier, more valued and more motivated, no longer tackling such massive needs alone. And with plans to take good public health practices into the community in 2022, we can’t wait to see what Mel and Achta do next.

You raised an amazing £301,823 for Operation: Chad, whether that was as church families coming together in wonderful harvest services, or as generous individuals, inspired by the healthcare you had received and wanting to give back. We’re so thankful for you all. If you missed the appeal, it’s not too late to give. Learn more about Operation: Chad right here.

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Words by Hannah Watson
Editor of Engage, the BMS World Mission magazine

The disease the world forgot

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Andrea and Mark Hotchkin on fighting an ‘orphan disease’ in the Chadian desert.

Orphan disease /ˈɔːf(ə)n /dɪˈziːz/ noun

A disease whose treatment or prevention has seen little investment by pharmaceutical companies, because any financial incentives for manufacturing new medications to treat or prevent it are small.
Orphan diseases may also include neglected tropical diseases, defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as a group of diseases concentrated almost exclusively in poor populations in the Global South. Among these diseases, which affect more than one billion people, are dengue fever, leprosy, onchocerciasis (river blindness) and leishmaniasis.

If you haven’t heard of leishmaniasis before, don’t worry, you’re not alone. Think of malaria, and you’re getting close, except that this microscopic parasitic disease is restricted to a much narrower geographical region, populated by the particular species of sandfly that transmits it. “In world-terms, it’s not an important disease,” says Mark Hotchkin, who, alongside his wife Andrea, has served as a surgeon in Chad for the past ten years. “Visceral leishmaniasis kills something like 20 to 40,000 people in the world every year, whereas malaria will see something like 10,000 deaths of children in Chad alone.”

And while the problem is of a totally different order in terms of numbers, when you live in an area that is affected by leishmaniasis – and patients start showing up to the hospital with worrying symptoms – it becomes less about the global statistics, and entirely about what you can do to help this person. “Really, you could argue that in terms of numbers, you should focus on malaria and forget about leishmaniasis,” adds Andrea. “But, I suppose, we’ve been in the right place at the right time.” Mark vividly remembers the day he was called to see his first leishmaniasis patient. It was 18 March 2018, and a child with a high fever had been brought to the hospital. It was an unusual case that left the staff team puzzled, but Mark was reminded of the leishmaniasis patients he’d only ever come across three or four times while working in the Chadian capital of N’Djamena. The little 12-year-old boy who had been brought to Mark was already extremely ill, and while Mark was confident of his diagnosis, he didn’t have access to any of the tests or medications he needed to treat the child.

A man and a woman talking outside a Chadian hospital.

The difficult truth

Because leishmaniasis has been categorised as an ‘orphan illness’ – restricted to the poorest parts of the world and not financially lucrative to create up-to-date medications for, you might be led to think its prognosis isn’t serious. And while eight in ten people will be naturally inoculated against the disease, visceral leishmaniasis (one form the disease can take) attacks the internal organs of the 20 per cent who aren’t.

Those who do go on to show symptoms will start to experience them a couple of months after being infected, as the disease infiltrates their bone marrow, liver and spleen. Sufferers become anaemic, feverish and eventually immunodeficient, unable to make new blood platelets and at risk of severe bleeding. Without treatment, it’s a slow, inevitable decline towards death.

Faced with this knowledge, and in an awful race against time, Mark and Andrea quickly sent out a call for the medication to everywhere they could think of, even going so far as to contact suppliers in England in case it could be found in time. A rare supply of drugs was frantically sourced by BMS pharmacist Claire Bedford and paid for by BMS World Mission – but – “It arrived shortly after he’d died,” says Andrea. “It was really very sad.” And while the medication did arrive, another patient had since passed away less than a day after arriving at the hospital. Time went by without any other leishmaniasis patients coming to the hospital, but, unbeknown to Andrea and Mark, echoes of the tragic deaths had found their way to Chad’s Ministry of Health. God had truly been at work, and it was with real surprise that Mark and Andrea found themselves being offered a large donation of leishmaniasis medication by the Ministry of Health’s own pharmacist, who wanted to know if Mark and Andrea had the skill to roll it out in the hospital in Bardaï.

“We got the drugs, we got the tests, and then… we started getting patients,” says Andrea. Ironically, the news that tests are available has made life more complicated when chatting to anxious parents, coming to the hospital with a feverish child. “The trouble is that these tests will give you a positive reading, even if you’re one of the eight in ten who is immune to leishmaniasis,” says Andrea. A positive reading means the team have to think hard about whether to start someone on the treatment plan of daily injections, which can span from 17 days all the way up to 30. This is because the treatment plan has lots of negative side-effects, partly due to leishmaniasis’ status as an orphan disease. Little research has gone into creating newer, more effective drugs, and with Andrea’s rough estimate that around five per cent of those who go on the treatment plan could die from those side effects, you start to appreciate the enormity of the decision Andrea and Mark have to make.

To make that crucial decision, they’ve developed a rigorous protocol to follow with each patient. They begin by taking on board what the patient says, ascertaining whether they’ve had a fever and how long it’s gone on for. Then, they’ll admit them to the hospital and monitor them, using a test to rule out malaria and treating them with antibiotics. Without any improvement from that, they’ll do the test for leishmaniasis and start them on the medication. Wonderfully, because the Ministry of Health has been involved since the beginning, the expensive treatment course is free for patients. A cohort of doctors has also been sent to examine Mark and Andrea’s work and suggest how it could be replicated across the country. “They were really impressed,” explains Andrea. The WHO has come on board too, and samples of the leishmaniasis strain have been sent to Cameroon for testing, so the most effective medication might be found. When the treatment plan is rolled out, affected areas of Chad will have the possibility of treating people with leishmaniasis for free, including, hopefully, at the BMS-supported Guinebor II hospital in N’Djamena. Andrea and Mark estimate that without the treatment hub they’ve created at the hospital, most patients they see would end up seeking help in Libya.

“Lots of things have fallen into place that have allowed us to do more than we would have ever imagined we could do,” says Andrea. Another positive consequence of the programme has been a huge increase in confidence in the hospital, with the wards filling up and patients staying for the whole course of their treatment, something that wasn’t a given previously. Two things are undeniable though: Andrea and Mark are quite clear that this astounding achievement would not have been possible without God’s provision and without your support.

“It is such a joy to see a child who has come in so sick go home laughing and running around,” reflect Andrea and Mark. “Thank you for enabling this to happen.”

Make pioneering healthcare and lifesaving work like this possible. You can enable Andrea and Mark’s crucial work when you support them regularly as a 24:7 Partner. Go to www.bmsworldmission.org/247 today, and support healthcare in northern Chad.

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Words by Hannah Watson, Editor of Engage, the BMS magazine.

Pray for Chad

Heightened tensions

Pray for Chad

Please pray for Chad after the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office advises British nationals to leave the country due to conflict over the weekend.

An armed convoy belonging to an opposition group has been engaged in fighting with Chad’s Government security forces over the past week, leading to the death of Chad’s president, Idriss Déby. On Saturday 17 April the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) advised all British nationals to leave Chad.

We are in touch with all BMS World Mission workers in Chad, and all UK-based workers have left the country safely, in close co-operation with the FCDO.

We are also in careful discussions with our partner, Guinebor II hospital, as to how best to maintain the safety and well-being of all its staff and patients.

Please join us in prayer for:

a peaceful resolution to this situation.
the safety and well-being of the staff and patients at Guinebor II. Pray that the hospital would be able to stay open, with minimal disruption to its activities.
all affected BMS mission workers. Pray for their continued safety and well-being during this turbulent time.

BMS World Mission has been working in Chad since 2010, delivering life-transforming health ministries through Guinebor II hospital in the capital, N’Djamena, and more recently further north, in Bardaï.

How to vaccinate the world

Join Hannah and Laura from BMS World Mission’s Advocacy Team, as we journey through one of the biggest issues facing the world today: just access to the Covid-19 vaccine.

Looking to the past

How many people do you know today who have suffered from polio? I imagine the answer is probably no-one, or at least very few. Cases have decreased by 99 per cent since the 1980s, and what was a tragically widespread disease is now only found in three countries in the world. And the reason? The vaccine was never patented, allowing for it to be made accessible worldwide and saving countless lives. In a recent blog post, BMS surgeons Mark and Andrea Hotchkin argue that the same attitude is needed to eradicate Covid-19.

A man and a woman outside a hut in the desert. — Andrea and Mark Hotchkin provide vital healthcare in Bardaï, Chad.

“Could you patent the sun?” These are the famous words of Jonas Salk, the creator of the polio vaccine, when asked who would own the vaccine. It’s a phrase being used by The People’s Vaccine Alliance, of which BMS is a part, to campaign for intellectual property waivers on the Covid-19 vaccines. Waiving the patents means vaccines can be manufactured across the world. Those waivers, however, are currently being blocked by Western countries, and have been since 2020. “It seems that for the rich nations it is unthinkable that this should be proposed. It is apparently just not the way our world works,” say Andrea and Mark. “But it doesn’t have to be this way.”

The struggles of the present

A woman in PPE — Rachel Conway-Doel is BMS' Overseas Team for Relief but is also a trained vaccinator in the UK.

So how do you go about co-ordinating a relief effort that is clouded by such complicated issues? Laura sat down with BMS’ Overseas Team Leader for Relief, Rachel Conway-Doel, to ask how she’s been facilitating BMS’ Coronavirus relief response since the beginning of 2020, and how BMS is supporting just access to the Covid-19 vaccine.

Laura: When you see what happened with the polio vaccine, how does that relate to what’s happening today with Covid-19 vaccine?

Rachel: So, this is the point of the People’s Vaccine Alliance (PVA). Their big thing is access to the vaccines – and one of the biggest things around that is the international intellectual property sharing. If the blocks aren’t lifted, it means that more manufacturers can’t make vaccines, and that means restricted supply, which means fewer people get vaccinated.

L: How does that link to BMS’ role in terms of the Campaign for a Covid-free world?

R: We’re part of the PVA, which is calling for equitable access – and intellectual property waivers are one of the biggest ways we’ll be able to achieve this. So it totally aligns with our petition, and it needs all the noise it can get. Because without the noise, the heads of state and big organisations won’t feel like it’s as central an issue.

On the ground

Many of us in the UK feel instinctively that vaccines are safe – but all around the world, fears about being made to have a recently developed vaccine are very real. Hannah spoke to Daniel and Regiane Clark, BMS workers in Peru, to hear why, in many contexts across the world, vaccine hesitancy is grounded in culture and history.

Hannah: Can you tell us how the Covid pandemic affected life in Peru?

Regiane: Since the pandemic started last year in March, the lockdown was very strict for Peruvians. The army was patrolling the streets, and you couldn’t go out… It was very difficult, and very hard, especially because 70 per cent of the population are informal workers who work out in the streets.

Two BMS mission workers and their daughter smiling into the camera. — Daniel and Regiane Clark have been advocating for the Covid-19 vaccine in Peru.

Daniel: And many don’t have bank accounts, or access to the internet.

H: Did you hear of many people becoming ill with the virus, and being hospitalised?

R: We did, but most people were dying at home… They would prefer to stay at home and be treated with natural medicines and by relatives, because the hospital might not have spaces.

D: There’s still a history and a legacy from the [Peruvian dictator Alberto] Fujimori era, of women who were sterilised. Some women were forced to be sterilised, or a lot of them were Quetchua-speaking but were given documents in Spanish, and they thought they were signing up to one thing. But they were signing up to not have any more children.

H: I’d like to ask you about the webinars you’ve been preparing – I think there was one around family health in the pandemic, focusing on good practices and myth-busting?

R: I think most people want the vaccine… but they have doubts. Maybe they had bad experiences in the past. The problem is, there is information going around Peru and in other countries in South America, confusing people. People think they could get side effects, or other kinds of diseases that would be worse by having the vaccine.

H: So when you are doing a seminar like that, what content would go into the web events?

D: These are new things… the one that will take most time is the one around debunking myths and reinforcing good health.
I think it’ll be true of other countries – not just Peru – that people do have a reason not to trust… you’re having to engage with what is quite a legitimate fear, a legitimate concern.

The workshops planned by Daniel and Regiane are just one of a number of ways that our partners are seeking to make just access to the Covid vaccine a reality. If you’d also like to be part of making a difference, why not sign our petition, the Campaign for a Covid-free world? Your voice will be added on those calling the UK Government to make decisions for the good of everyone, not just the wealthiest nations, when it comes to equal access. And we’ll keep you in the loop with how else you can be involved in supporting vaccine rollouts in the places we work, too.

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Words by Hannah Watson and Laura Durrant.

You saved their lives

Operation: Chad

You saved their lives

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The rattle of metal wheels as a patient is gently pushed into the operating theatre. The moment of silent anticipation before a newborn baby cries out for the first time. The earnest words of prayer said before a difficult surgery. These are the sounds of Guinebor II (G2) hospital. These are the stories you helped to tell.

This isn’t the end of the story for G2 hospital.

Our amazing BMS World Mission supporters have raised an incredible £283,000 by featuring our Operation: Chad appeal in church services across the UK. And there’s still time to raise even more! You can hold an Operation: Chad service all year round, and if you want some accessible and copyright-free resources for your online service, then look no further. From video sermons to a quiz to our stunning feature video, we’ve got everything you’ll need for your service.

Mohammed Ibrahim Hassaballah

It’s been five years since Mohammed’s son began to show the symptoms of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Five years of going to hospital after hospital to try and get the help he so desperately needed. Every time they thought he’d been given some transformative treatment or lifechanging intervention, it was only a matter of time before he deteriorated again – before Mohammed was back desperately trying to find the best way to help his son.

Then the unimaginable happened one morning in 2019. “My son fell ill. It was as if his body was dead,” said Mohammed. “His throat was blocked, and he couldn’t move, eat, drink, breathe, nothing.” That was when Mohammed made the decision that saved his son’s life: he brought him to Guinebor II.

Mohammed’s son was able to get the treatment that would save his life… but it didn’t stop there. He’s had regular physiotherapy and music therapy sessions since he first came to Guinebor II. He smiles as he strums the guitar in his music therapy session, a far cry from the lifeless boy who first arrived in his father’s arms.

“It’s thanks to this hospital my boy is still alive,” says Mohammed. “I give thanks to God and the doctors here.”

Mohammed helps his son with muscle-building physiotherapy.

Rakié Akaye

Rakié recently gave birth to a healthy baby boy.

“I came to the hospital on the back of a motorbike. We arrived here at 6 am… my labour lasted 16 hours. It was really painful, and I was scared because it’s the first time I’ve given birth. But I trusted the midwives.

“I’m so happy, and I’m just asking God to keep my baby safe. Guinebor II hospital is just really good. I had a really good welcome and I was well looked after.

“My hopes are that God will look after my son. I really hope that when he’s old enough he’ll be able to go to school.”

Enjoyed this story? Click here!

How you helped Rakié

Chad has the fifth highest infant mortality rate in the world. But your generous gifts to Operation: Chad have been used to support the amazing team of midwives at G2, meaning they can bring even more healthy babies into the world.

Mahamat Aboss Abdel Karim

Age: 30 years old

At Guinebor II for: Hepatitis and a ruptured liver

Journey: Four days

How you helped him: Many people in Chad still turn to traditional medicines when they’re ill which often don’t work and sometimes cause further damage. By coming to G2, Mahamat was able to get the right treatment he needs to help him fully recover.

In his own words: “Thank you – I’m feeling much better now. I’m going to tell other people that G2 is a good hospital.”

Al-Fadil Abalallah

It was raining the day Al-Fadil’s life changed forever. His van skidded on the already treacherous roads and flipped over, knocking him unconscious for over an hour. When he woke up, he was severely injured, with a broken arm and leg. But that was just the beginning of the problems he would face.

Al-Fadil travelled thousands of miles from his native Sudan to try and find the right treatment. Nobody could help him, not even during the five months spent with traditional healers who bound his arm and leg tightly. Many doctors told him his leg would have to be amputated. But one day Al-Fadil spoke to his boss who, thankfully, could speak from experience…

“My boss told me he’d had an accident too,” Al-Fadil explains. “When he came to Guinebor II, he recovered really quickly and that’s why he told me to come here.” When Al-Fadil finally came to G2, everything changed. He was able to receive the proper care he needed to heal and to save his leg, without any complications. “The doctors here are really looking after me,” says Al-Fadil. “I think that by the grace of God, everything is going to be ok.”

Words by Laura Durrant.

You've done amazing things this year:

Thank you for saving lives

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You have helped more than 36,000 people in 24 countries across the globe. And you’re making a difference right now.

Yemen. Afghanistan. Chad. Nigeria. South Sudan. Bangladesh. Ghana. Mozambique. These are some of the least developed countries in the world. These are some of the places where your gifts to the BMS World Mission Coronavirus appeal are making a huge difference.

Coronavirus global response: you helped more than 36,000 people

You are part of a global effort to respond to the Coronavirus pandemic. Covid-19 continues to threaten livelihoods, push people further into poverty, and disproportionately impact our world’s most vulnerable communities. While the pandemic rages on, BMS will continue to respond. And we can only do that because of you.

Key facts: your response so far

You’ve helped more than 36,000 people in 24 countries across four continents
You donated more than £288,000 to the global Baptist response
You enabled BMS to give 30 relief grants so far, in our most complex and wide-reaching relief effort ever

How you have made a difference

You’ve provided Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for frontline workers, given emergency food supplies, provided soap and handwashing guidance, helped to build a satellite Coronavirus hospital, provided phone credit to pastors to reach their congregations, counselled patients and frontline workers… and more! And you’re still helping right now in some of the world’s most fragile communities

Right now, you’re part of co-ordinated responses in Lebanon, Greece, Turkey, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Yemen, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Chad. You’re providing food parcels, hygiene supplies, face masks and medical support. You’re standing with refugee communities and displaced people who lack the basic resources they need to survive this pandemic. And you’re also helping people in South America get back on their feet by providing small grants and training for people to re-start and strengthen businesses.

The food parcel you provided for Mashura was an absolute lifeline for her whole family.

Mashura lives with her husband and three children in a small one-room house in the Satkhira District of Bangladesh. This is her story, in her own words.

“Before this pandemic, our family was doing well. I used to support my family by raising cattle and chicken. Recently, we are in a crisis of food scarcity due to this Covid-19 pandemic. Earnings are completely cut-off due to the lockdown.

“I had to sell everything because of the Coronavirus outbreak. My husband lost his work and there was not enough food for everyone. We needed help so much and we were waiting for help from someone. We prayed to God to help us.

“When this situation was going on, we heard about the [BMS-supported] project providing food items for many people in need. Thanks to the infinite grace of God, I was also included in the list of food distribution. In such a situation, after receiving this food package, my family’s food needs have been met. There is no need to go to the market with risk. Me and my family have benefited a lot.

“I would like to thank the concerned donors for their help with food during this pandemic.”

A Bangladeshi woman receives aid from BMS' Coronavirus appeal — Thanks to your support Mashura was able to feed her family.

You've provided so much across the world in response to the coronavirus pandemic

By sacrificially supporting BMS in this time of global crisis, you have partnered with Baptist organisations across the world to help where it was and is needed most.

Some of the things you made possible this year include:

Providing food and soap for 1,200 people in Uganda, who were not only facing the threat of Coronavirus but were also affected by flash floods.
Empowering 8,770 children and teachers in Mozambique to help stop the spread of Covid-19 through the provision of soap and handwashing lessons.
Ensuring medical workers in Nepal and Chad had the PPE and face masks they needed to tackle Coronavirus in their hospitals.
Providing 2,604 people in Peru with vital food parcels.
And so much more!

Coronavirus response in Bangladesh — From Bangladesh to Peru, Uganda to the Philippines, you've made a huge difference across the world by supporting our Coronavirus appeal.

Thank you for saving lives across the world during this pandemic. And thank you for enabling us to continue responding to the needs our partners are sharing with us. You really are still making a difference.

Read in-depth stories of the way your gifts to the BMS Coronavirus appeal saved lives in Afghanistan and empowered women in Mozambique on pages 8 to 11 of Engage, Issue 48.

Liking this? Click here

‘That’s why we’ve come to Chad’

‘That’s why we’ve come to Chad’:

Tom Spears on Chad’s healthcare, the huge need, and how you can help

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When Tom Spears imagined working overseas as a doctor, he knew with great certainty he’d be headed to Nepal. It was a country he had served in before, and where he knew there was so much need. But this week’s story is all about how, and why, Tom and his wife Mel changed their minds – and why God needed them in Chad instead. Read on to discover how you can join them in saving lives in the precious, challenging, inspiring country they now call home.

“Chad? That’s in the desert… isn’t it?” exclaims Tom Spears, remembering his reaction when a country in which he and Mel had never considered serving became the number one option on the table. It was a winsome email from BMS World Mission’s central office that eventually changed his and Mel’s minds. It began: “These are all the reasons we think you should go to Chad,” and ended with: “Pray about it!”

When we spoke to Tom about all this – under a rustling tree canopy on a blustery Chadian winter’s day – it was obvious how God answered that prayer. “BMS has a lot to answer for,” Tom jokes. A few weeks into the family’s time in Chad, these were Tom’s reflections on healthcare, the huge need, and how you can help by supporting Operation: Chad.

A young British couple hold their daughters on their hips, against a leafy background in Chad. — "There’s always going to be a need for more people to help here," says Tom on the decision to come to Chad.

Since you arrived in Chad, has anything struck you as being very different to what you expected?

Possibly it’s been slightly easier than I imagined, so far. There’s a good sense of community here… [swats away a fly] Sorry – flies! The flies are more irritating here – there’s not very many of them, but they’re very persistent! Possibly the hospital is slightly different from my experience of working in what I thought was a similar hospital in Nepal before.

There are lots of things that are just much less available or that cost a lot more to obtain here… things like supply of medications, that’s quite a challenge. The cost of being able to give care here is much higher. I’ve grown up with a socialised healthcare system, which is amazing, and which is the kind of paradigm that I feel is right, and that makes sense. And I’m aware that’s just the culture that I’ve come from, and that that just isn’t the reality here in Chad.

Tom Spears on the tragedy of infant mortality in Chad

We heard stories of patients who travel 500 miles to come to Guinebor II hospital because they know they’ll receive good care here. What do you make of that?

I was speaking to one of the nurse-consultants here who was saying that recently, we’ve had more people coming from further away, lots of people from nomadic backgrounds where it’s very important for them to get back to their livestock. They would rather come here where they know they’re going to get reliably seen and treated.

I know Kalbassou, the Hospital Director – he’s just got such a heart to help people, and he just works such long hours at the moment doing so many operations, and it’s because he wants to keep on helping people… but really, we don’t have the capacity to help the number of people that he or any of us would like to. There’s always going to be a need for more people to help here.

Chadian healthcare, in Tom’s own words

“Chad as a country is fourth from the bottom of the Human Development Index.

It has some of the worst maternal health outcomes in the world, and the second-highest infant mortality rate.

It’s a big country, and there are very few hospitals and medical facilities in general.”

A British doctor and a Chadian doctor chat to each other in a hospital setting. — Tom pictured with Hospital Director, Kalbassou Doubassou, who also performs most of the hospital's surgeries.

It’s so clear there is huge need in Chad – but at the moment there is also undeniably significant need in the UK. What would you say to BMS supporters thinking carefully about where to invest their giving at a time like this?

We’ve reached a point where people’s expectations of healthcare in the UK are high – and I think that’s a good thing. But, equally, there are many, many other places in the world that have low expectations of healthcare… I’ve got a three-month-old on the ward at the moment with meningitis and in reality, they’ve got a significant chance of dying. But that will be accepted, because children die here, that happens. Whereas in the UK, that’s an outrage, and it’s not just an outrage for the family, it’s a public outrage. A child died – and it is, it’s awful, it’s a tragedy. But this is a ‘normal’ tragedy here…

That’s the reality of life here, that most people have lost a child. And that’s just an example among many things.

Dr Tom at work at Guinebor II hospital in Chad — A patient check-up led by Guinebor II nurse, Christophe.

What can we in the UK do to help?

There’s a huge amount of inequality in the world, and whilst investing in the NHS is a great thing, and I’m all for that – equally, relatively small amounts of money go considerably further here in making a difference. There’s lots of basic interventions here in Chad that do save lives, and in my mind, that’s a bit of a no brainer. And that’s probably, really, why we’ve come to Chad.

Could you give to make sure the life-saving treatment at Guinebor II hospital reaches even more people?

– It costs just £13 to ensure each person receives the care they need. For £13 you could help us save a life.

– And if you could give more, £80 can provide a nurse to take care of critically ill patients for a week.

– And could your church fellowship come together to raise £695? That would mean 52 patients being cared for, four life-saving surgeries and five babies making it safely into the world.

Join the medical mission, and give today.

Give now

Interview: Hannah Watson
Editor of Engage, the BMS World Mission magazine

An Oasis of Healing

Pictures from the frontline:

An oasis of healing

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Newborn babies letting out their first cry, broken bones being set, patients being wheeled to life-saving surgery. This is everyday life at Guinebor II (G2) hospital in Chad, and it’s what photographer Alex Baker experienced when he went to take photos of the hospital for BMS World Mission’s Operation: Chad appeal. These are the stories behind his shots.

“Rakié Akaye knew all the risks coming into the maternity ward. But for her, G2 was a safe pair of hands. A place she knew would be safe for her child to be born.”

“That’s what is so inspiring about this hospital – the peace of mind it provides to scared people. It’s a safe place to be, a chance of hope, an opportunity for recovery.”

“Agnès Netadé was one of many people who work at the hospital who were willing and open to sharing their stories about life at G2. They were all so caring, patient, gentle and considerate. I could see why people travelled so far to be treated here.”

“It was in the operating theatre that we understood for the first time what makes Kalbassou, Director of G2, so special. Why his skills are such a blessing. Watching him performing surgery was an intense experience – it’s a space where the preciousness of life becomes apparent. Kalbassou was as calm and commanding there as he was when he greeted us. He was exactly the person I’d want to operate on me.”

“Al-Fadil Abalallah was at G2 to have his broken arm and leg treated. It was a particularly bad fracture. He’d travelled a long way. But he was grateful to be here. He knew he was in good hands.”

“We heard many stories of how surgery had saved lives, but G2 offered its patients so much more. I will never forget the look of pure joy that filled Mohammed’s face during his musical therapy session. When BMS music therapist Bethan Shrubsole played him songs and shared her instruments with him, his face would just light up.”

Join the operation

You can save even more lives in Chad by supporting the BMS Operation: Chad appeal. Click here to give today.

Photographs by Alex Baker.

The Power of Play

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I could have spoken with them for hours. Creative therapy is making a difference across the world, from Lebanon to Mozambique, Uganda to Thailand, and although each context is different, with every BMS World Mission worker and partner I spoke to, I discovered the same thing: children who have been through unimaginable pain. And how you’re making new ways of healing possible.

She sat in the corner and stared at the wall in her first session. Fatimé was completely disengaged from the world before she started music therapy. Her epilepsy medication makes it difficult for her to stay awake for a whole session, but at least it stops the fitting. BMS music therapist Bethan Shrubsole has been working with Fatimé for seven months. She’s made real progress since the beginning: now she can look directly at her family.

For the uninitiated, music and play therapies might seem like a modern fad, only available to those in the West, and involving expensive, luxury items like sensory toys. But by speaking to BMS therapists from Chad (where Bethan works with Fatimé) to Thailand (where Judy Cook works with Sam), I’m finding the truth is much more encouraging.

Thousands of miles away, lives a little boy whose experiences are very similar to Fatimé’s. Sam is blind and has epilepsy. He also has a brain condition similar to cerebral palsy. He’s been at Hope Home for almost all his life, where BMS worker Judy Cook can give him the support he needs. He’s non-verbal and doesn’t know how to play with the other children. But he likes feeling different textures in his physical therapy sessions, he likes laying on his mat and making scratchy sounds with his fingers. And he loves music. More specifically, he loves The Beatles.

A boy with severe disabilities receives therapy. — Music makes Sam's physical therapy so much more effective.

“He’s quite hard to calm down sometimes,” says BMS worker Judy Cook, who founded Hope Home. “But music has always helped.” And for a boy with wild emotions like Sam’s, who can sometimes get so cross he hits himself, keeping calm is an incredibly important part of his therapy. “We put Hey Jude on and it was like a switch went on in his head,” Judy says. The music makes him smile and laugh, and stops him screaming. Playing Hey Jude isn’t going to cure Sam of his epilepsy, but, along with the other therapies Judy and her team are giving to Sam and the other children under her care, it is already making his life better.

A sensory playground helps support trauma victims in Lebanon. — Play therapy is helping children recover after the devastating blast in Beirut earlier this year.

And it’s not only children with additional needs like Sam and Fatimé who can benefit from creative therapies. BMS partner the Lebanese Society for Educational and Social Development (LSESD) has been helping children in Beirut in the aftermath of the devastating blast that rocked the city earlier this year. Many of Lebanon’s children have never experienced trauma like this before and don’t have the coping mechanisms to deal with it. So LSESD has started with one of the basics: play.

Daniella Daou and her team at LSESD have set up a sensory playground for children in Beirut, with stimulating play stations, art and storytelling spaces. “The point of the playground is for children to have fun, to de-stress and to express what they’re feeling,” says Daniella. They also have a psychologist present who watches the children’s behaviour and looks at their artwork to see if they’re showing signs of trauma. And the playground isn’t only there to help the children, it’s there to give respite to their parents.

They can take a break while their children play, and can speak to the on-site psychologist to see how their children are coping. Giving their children the opportunity to play in the face of such a tragedy is a key part of their healing process.

Play therapy can also help parents and children to bond and to express love and care in a beautiful way. BMS speech therapist Lois Ovenden tells a story of a mother and son who came to a play therapy session she was running in a clinic in Uganda a few years ago. The boy’s condition was too severe for Lois to give him all the help he needed. “He couldn’t walk, he couldn’t see,” says Lois. “He couldn’t have been more than two.” But for one session, Lois showed his mother some play therapy techniques she could use to interact with her son. “It was so beautiful watching them together,” she says. “The incredible love she had for her child – it almost filled the room.”

A child receiving play therapy Uganda — Lois Ovenden was able to show parents in Uganda how play could help them bond with their children.

Lois only showed the mother some simple techniques, like how touching her son’s face and letting him feel different textures could establish a connection and help him experience fun and beauty. Small things. But they made the boy smile and he started to make soft cooing noises. Lois could tell that he knew his mother, how much he loved her. The beautiful bond they shared, expressed in the only way he could.

Many other parents were sceptical though. They thought that play therapy was only available to those who could afford expensive western toys. But according to BMS play therapist Liz Vilela serving in Mozambique, the opposite is true.

“The best way to connect with a child is for them to use what they’re used to,” says Liz. And BMS therapists are showing this across the world. In Uganda, Lois encouraged parents to make toys out of banana leaves so they can play together with their children. In Chad, Bethan uses an Arabic song in her sessions with Fatimé, because it’s the language her family uses, and it’s what she engages with the most. Meeting people where they are helps families build stronger relationships and it makes creative therapies accessible to so many more people.

A child in Chad receiving music therapy — For children like Fatimé and Mohammed (pictured), Bethan's music therapy sessions have made a real difference.

Talking to Lois, Judy and Liz, I was constantly reminded of Fatimé. A child disengaged from the world, brought to a fuller life through music and play. Before she started therapy, she did nothing but sit in the corner, separate from everyone around her. But after seven months of sessions, she can now look at her siblings. She claps along to songs. They’re small steps, but for Fatimé and her family, they mean hope. I ask Bethan about her hopes for Fatimé. How would she like to see her progress? “I want her to be able to say ‘Mama’,” she says. For Fatimé, that’s a huge ask. But for a mother to hear her little girl say ‘Mama’ for the first time? That makes all the effort worth it.

Words by Laura Durrant

Calling all stewards

Looking after the planet just got easier

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Creation stewardship is crucial to our mission, and to our faith. It’s why BMS World Mission was on the streets with Christian Climate Action earlier this week. It’s why we’ve been supporting creation care initiatives for years. And it’s why we’re encouraging you to do what you can in the fight for climate justice. Not everyone can join a demonstration, but by using our new carbon calculator, you can offset your carbon footprint and put that money straight back into the environment.

Come with us to a fragile desert ecosystem – one that’s home to the peoples of the Tibesti region in mountainous northern Chad. We’re in the mid-Sahara Desert, so as you may imagine, medical provision in this remote and unyielding environment might be hard to come by. But travel to the oasis town of Bardaï, and you’ll meet BMS medical workers Andrea and Mark Hotchkin. They’ve lived here for years, supporting the government hospital which provides 24-hour healthcare (whether through life-saving surgeries or supporting safe childbirth) to the communities who need it.

A mountainous desert landscape. — This mountainous desert landscape is home to the peoples of the Tibesti region.

The sad irony is that this beacon of life and health has traditionally had to rely on diesel generators to get electricity pumping round its wards. Like any hospital, the one in Bardaï needs to keep life-giving medication refrigerated and crucial equipment powered for use in medical and surgical emergencies. But that meant 35,000 litres of diesel fuel per year being burned up in a 60KW generator, releasing 90,000kg of greenhouse-generating CO2 into a delicately balanced desert climate. The generator was expensive, limited, and damaging. But in a place as remote as Bardaï, it used to be the only option.

“Used to be”, because the Bardaï hospital project is the first BMS project to receive the Climate Stewards Seal of Approval. Under the scheme, money raised through offsetting carbon is invested in supporting green initiatives to protect our planet – starting in Bardaï. Where diesel used to fuel the hospital, solar panels now power a majority of its needs. And when you choose to offset what you can’t reduce in your own carbon footprint, you become part of this incredible solution – reducing emissions in Bardaï and, as more creation care and carbon reduction projects come online, around the world.

Soon, by calculating and offsetting your carbon emissions with the BMS Carbon Calculator, you will be a part of initiatives that meet the high standards of Climate Stewards and that do something real and valuable to fight climate change. From emissions-reducing efforts in Christ-glorifying ministries like the Bardaï hospital project, to planting trees for carbon capture and oxygen production, BMS is committed to being part of the solution to our climate crisis, and to doing it in the name of Jesus.

Solar panels funded by BMS supporters being unloaded from a plane. — The panels arrived on a flight already scheduled to visit the region, so no extra carbon emissions were created by their delivery.

The BMS-supported government hospital at Bardai. — Solar panels will now power a majority of this crucial hospital's needs.

The Bardaï solar panels will save an estimated 1,578 tonnes of carbon emissions over a period of 20 years, representing an 87 per cent reduction in annual fuel consumption. To put that into context, the yearly saving is equivalent to the output of 24 standard UK cars, and the financial saving for the hospital equivalent to six months’ worth of life-saving medications.

It’s also going to improve lives by improving reliable power. The old generator’s output was patchy, meaning patients might give birth by torchlight at night. The new solar panels allow the hospital to function for 24 hours a day with proper lighting and refrigeration of medications – enabling better care, more thorough cleaning, safer operations and a hugely better atmosphere for patients and staff. And it’s hoped that the solar panels will generate interest from the local community, raising awareness of green energies and better alternatives for fuelling life in Bardaï.

God gave us a world to take care of. Doing so doesn’t need to be a choice between helping people and being good stewards. Praise God for this opportunity to do both!

Try our new carbon calculator!

At BMS World Mission, we want to encourage you to reduce what you can. But for carbon emissions you can’t reduce, our calculator will allow you to invest in greener solutions for some of the most fragile places on earth. Take positive action in responsible stewardship, and try the calculator today!

Join us in praying for our planet Click here

Words by Hannah Watson, Editor of Engage, the BMS World Mission magazine.

Heroes of Guinebor II

The people you can support through Operation: Chad

Some superheroes wear scrubs.

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You can be a hero too! Give to Operation: Chad today, and save lives in the Sahel for years to come.

We have a mission for you and your church. We’re asking you to save lives in Chad this harvest.

Working at Guinebor II hospital in the Chadian desert is not a job for the faint-hearted. In 40-plus degree heat, the medical team, supported by BMS World Mission, operates on tumours, resets broken bones, and stitches up gunshot wounds. They treat malnutrition and malaria, deliver babies and diagnose diabetes – working in a publicly Christian hospital, even while the threat of Boko Haram looms large.

These men and women have an extraordinary mission – to bring hope and healing in the Sahel. When you and your church support Operation: Chad, you can help them.

Meet some of the heroes of Guinebor II hospital

Kalbassou Doubassou

Role: Director of Guinebor II hospital

Kalbassou has the huge task of directing all the work of Guinebor II hospital! In 2019, 14,423 patients benefitted from the care of Kalbassou’s dedicated team. Guinebor II medical workers perform life-saving surgeries, and treat everything from snake bites and malaria, to broken bones and cancer. They do it all in the name of Jesus, and thanks to your support.

Meet Kalbassou by running an Operation: Chad service in your church! Watch the Operation: Chad feature video now.

In his own words: “Being the head of the hospital is [a] miracle, because I didn’t expect it. But by his grace, I am doing the work. I’m proud of the hospital, because the hospital is making a difference. And the nurses are doing their job. And the doctors are taking care of patients… Everybody is welcoming, so all our patients are happy. So it’s exciting to see a place like Guinebor II hospital.

“We have Jesus to give to people, but we also have skills to give good quality care to people. So that’s the most exciting part.”

Kalbassou is director of Guinebor II hospital. He is a hero.

Agnes is Head Nurse at Guinebor II hospital. She is a hero.

Agnès Netadé

Role: Head nurse at Guinebor II hospital

Agnes has been working at Guinebor II since 2011, and has been overseeing all the nursing staff at the hospital for the last year. She is committed to ensuring that all the patients coming to Guinebor II receive excellent care and experience the love of God through the work of her team.

In her own words: “We’re so, so happy to work here because everything we do here is in God’s will, it’s him who sustains us, and who helps us to do it well. We’re grateful because the patients themselves smile at us and tell us that they have not been disappointed by coming here.

“The nurses working here are often on the wards on their own, or just with one other nurse. So to encourage and motivate the nurses, I go round each day to give them advice. I say, ‘Please, be joyful, be welcoming in front of patients, and take care of them like they are one of your own. And you will be blessed.’”

Claire Bedford

Role: Pharmacist and member of the management team at Guinebor II

The pharmacy is an essential part of Guinebor II hospital, and Claire has been working hard to develop it. She makes sure that the hospital is well-stocked with essential (and affordable) medications, so that once patients receive their diagnoses, they can access the treatment they need to get better.

In her own words: “The reason I get up in the morning is to be able to provide medications for our patients… That’s why we all get up in the morning and run around a lot at the hospital – just to provide the best that we can for people who otherwise wouldn’t have access to very good healthcare.

“My pharmacy team is amazing, they are like a small family to me. And it’s great to see them every day and work with them. We laugh and joke like any team does – and they work very hard! It makes me happy that we can help the Chadian people and provide this service for them.”

Claire is a pharmacist at Guinebor II hospital. She is a hero.

Moussa is Counsulting Nurse at Guinebor II hospital. He is a hero.

Moussa Idriss Adoum

Role: Consulting nurse at Guinebor II

Moussa diagnoses and treats patients coming to Guinebor II hospital. On the day we met him, he had seen 35 patients. Most of them had malaria, but he also assessed two emergency cases – a child with a bladder stone and a father with a suspected stroke – and made sure they got the urgent care they needed.

In his own words: “When we receive people for treatment, they often don’t even realise the strain they are living with. People die in our village of cardiac arrests, and people think it’s caused by bad omens. So it’s social problems that are causing people to die. The leading cause of death after malaria is accidents. People are living with such tension that they’re not stopping to focus on what they’re doing.

“For the past ten years, the hospital has been growing. Why? Because it has a good reputation. We’re a very experienced team, and we’re motivated by that.”

Patrice Bekoutou

Role: Anaesthetist at Guinebor II

Patrice works in the operating theatre, preparing patients for their procedures, administering the anaesthetic they need, and praying with them before they undergo surgery.

In his own words: “We’ve seen several patients who have accepted Jesus into their lives, because all of the actions we’re doing here are in the name of Jesus, showing the love of Jesus. They’ve testified to the fact that first we shared the gospel with them, and then they accepted Jesus Christ into their lives as their Saviour. So, really, it’s the grace of God in action.

“Sharing the gospel with our neighbours, well, that’s what Jesus Christ commands us to do. We do it in faith. And when we share the gospel with those around us and they accept it, well, it’s a joy.”

Patrice is an anaesthetist at Guinebor II hospital. He is a hero.

Operation: Chad is coming!

Save lives. Support Operation: Chad.

You can support these amazing medical workers on their mission to save lives in Chad! Our brand-new video Operation: Chad is available to watch now! We can’t wait for you to see it. Speak to your minister and ask them to schedule an Operation: Chad service for your church – it’s perfect for harvest, and can also be used anytime!

Stand with these heroes of Guinebor II and save lives in the Sahel. Get Operation: Chad in your church calendar now.

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Thank you

Let (climate) justice flow like a river…

Reflections on COP28

Susan Blanch Alal, Justice Livelihoods Health (JLH), Uganda

Pray with us

Karen Name: Naw Bah Blute Paw Thai Name: Khun Mayuree 2nd year student in the Karen Theology Programme, Siloam Bible Institute, Thailand

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Sahara Mishra, Human Development Community Services, Nepal

Pray with us

Claire Bedford, BMS pharmacist, Guinebor II Hospital (G2), Chad

Pray with us

A farewell to Chad

Celebrating a season of mission

Hi Bethan and Gareth, Mel and Tom and Brian and Jackie! As you come to the end of this season serving at G2, we’d love to take you back to where it all began. What were your first impressions of serving in a Chadian desert hospital?

And how did you see those challenges of life in Chad play out amongst your patients?

Were you surprised by how God ended up using you in such a fragile context?

And what were some of the biggest encouragements?

Thank you all for the incredible investment of your time, skills and lives during your time at G2, made possible by UK supporters. We’ve loved welcoming Jackie onto the BMS staff team in the UK as our new Safeguarding Lead, and we look forward to staying in touch.

Harnessing the sun

The healing power of solar panels

Bardaï Hospital appeal

Help get life-saving healthcare to people in Chad

Benjamin's life could have been destroyed without Bardaï hospital.

Ready to give?

The diary of a BMS surgeon

The incredible work you support in Chad

Your Harvest legacy

The gifts you gave are still bearing fruit

2015: My Father’s House

2017: Wonderfully Made

2018: Life’s First Cry

2020: Operation: Chad

2021: I Will Stand

The hospital, the miracle and the impossible secret

Operation: Chad – one year on, revisited

You’re bringing hope to people with a deadly ‘orphan’ disease

Pulling back the curtain on ‘goldminer’s syndrome’

When training saves lives

A year of reflection

Operation: Chad – one year on

What’s been happening at G2?

Cultural shifts

Tackling malnutrition

The difficult truth

Heightened tensions

Pray for Chad

How to vaccinate the world

Looking to the past

The struggles of the present

On the ground

Operation: Chad

You saved their lives

Mohammed Ibrahim Hassaballah

Rakié Akaye

Mahamat Aboss Abdel Karim

Al-Fadil Abalallah

You've done amazing things this year:

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The food parcel you provided for Mashura was an absolute lifeline for her whole family.

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Meet some of the heroes of Guinebor II hospital

Kalbassou Doubassou

Agnès Netadé

Karen Name: Naw Bah Blute Paw
Thai Name: Khun Mayuree
2nd year student in the Karen Theology Programme, Siloam Bible Institute, Thailand