The Joy of Being a Christian Physician

Occasionally God allows us to see our role in the process of building His kingdom.  As health-care workers we are privileged to offer advice regarding the diseases that afflict our patients, bringing both comfort and healing to their bodies.  But treating the physical is only part of our calling.  God calls us to integrate our faith in the process as well as giving Him all the credit for the result.

In the International Saline course we learn about the importance of integrating faith and medicine to bring about healing of the body and healing of the soul.  We use faith flags to identify ourselves as people who believe in God and project the hope we have in Christ.

Recently, I received a call from a mother with a 10-year-old son who developed an abscess on his knee from a small wound.  She was very concerned because despite lancing the lesion and trying to remove the purulent material, the infection was getting worse.  This was quite painful for her son.  The next step would be to go to the hospital which neither the mother nor the child was eager to do.  What else could be done?

Normally, I do not recommend treating patients over the phone.   But on those occasions when I do, I tell the patient what to expect and when to call back so they don’t develop a false sense of security and delay more appropriate treatment, creating a worse situation.  I prescribed an antibiotic, warm compresses three times a day and gave specific directions about what to expect.  I told her I would be praying for her son.

After several days I called to learn what happened and this is what she told me.

“After the first day of antibiotics we were not really seeing any improvements.  I am so glad you told me to wait for the second day or I would have been very nervous.  We had two groups of people praying.  My son was really afraid to have to go to the doctor to be “cut up” so to speak.  On the evening of the second day of antibiotics, the inflammation was less and the circle of redness for the first time had started to become smaller.  Praise God!  In the morning of the third day we saw a miracle.  It was completely healed.  No redness and the opening where the pus was coming out had closed.  It was as if it had been healed a week before.  We nevertheless continued with the antibiotics.

“One of the sweet things I got to see from my son was that after each cleaning, still with tears in his eyes, he would come and hug me and give me thanks for cleaning his wound.  What an amazing opportunity the Lord gave me to see that my son understands: that we who try to heal sometimes produce pain for the benefit of our patients, as does God.  I was so proud of his courage in this ordeal.  At the end, he became stronger, he understood very clearly the power of prayer, he experienced first hand the power of medicine and he gave Glory to God for it all!

“We have been blessed!  Thank you again for direction and for the “peace” you gave me over the phone!  You have blessed me, my son and my family!  Indeed, it is by His grace and it is for His glory!”

God used my words to offer hope to this family and revealed His eternal purpose in the process to this mother and her son.

Thank you God for your encouragement and for teaching us how we can be your instruments of both temporal and spiritual healing.  May we always remember to give you the credit for our success.

Travel to Western Ukraine

Part of being of a missionary is being willing to serve and to go whenever and wherever.  Some missionaries are not required to travel much in the countries where they serve while others are continually leaving family and familiar environs to meet, teach, and share with those God has given them the opportunity to serve.

So, when I had the opportunity to travel to western Ukraine this past month and take Marianna along with me, it was a real blessing.  We boarded our train on a Wednesday night in Kyiv and arrived in Ivano-Frankovsk the next morning.  At the train station we were met by Andrei Mikitin who is the director of a rehabilitation center for families dealing with HIV/AIDS.  It is always exciting to learn about what God is doing through other ministries.

Andrei is a man who used to work in the government, but since becoming a Christian in 2004, he has begun an organization/charitable fund called Solidarity (www.solidarity.if.ua).  They publish a small newspaper, paid for by  selling advertisements.  They provide support for programs related to alcoholism and drug use as well as families affected by HIV/AIDS.  Western Ukraine is not as affected by the HIV crisis, but often find themselves underfunded because the  money goes to areas more severely affected.

After we met Andrei’s staff, we were invited to meet with several children who are HIV+.  When one 10-year-old boy arrived, his jaw dropped when he saw me.  “I know you  You are one of the doctors at Okmadet where I was a patient recently.”  I was just as surprised.  This was a good reminder of how God directs our paths providing divine appointments according to His purpose.

Also present was a woman who was gaunt and obviously ill.  During the conversation Jim was able to plant the seeds of the gospel and offer true hope through Christ.  Pray for this woman that she might be one step closer to salvation,  eternal life and healing for her body and soul.

During our brief visit, we discovered several areas of overlapping interest besides the care of HIV+ patients.  These included Biblical counseling, adoption, publishing of Christian books and networking with other Christian organizations in Ukraine.

Our time in Ivano-Frankovsk was short, but very profitable.  In the afternoon we left by bus and headed for Mukatchava to visit Dr. Pavel Orossi and learn about the Christian Clinic he started with the help of the Luke Society.  On the map it looks like a short three-hour trip, but I forgot we were crossing the Carpathian Mountains.  As we crossed the mountains it began to snow.  At one rest stop there appeared to be about six inches of snow on the ground and it was still snowing hard.  Seven hours later we arrived and were taken to the Christian Hotel connected to the Reformed Church of which Pavel is a member.

After a very comfortable night’s sleep and a delicious breakfast we began our time with Dr. Orossi.  We first met him at the UMO conference for young Christian physicians in August 2008 and deepened our relationship with him at the International Christian Medical Dental Association  meetings in Austria.  He is very much interested in encouraging his colleagues, sharing his faith with his patients and developing the International Saline program in Ukraine.

The medical clinic he started in 2000 with the support of the Luke Society is now self-sufficient except for the restoring or the purchasing of major equipment.  By the grace of God they have the most modern clinic I have visited in Ukraine.  They started from the beginning to be committed to excellence in whatever they did because they serve a most excellent God.  Until recently they owned the only CT scanner in the region.  Their mammography equipment is the only functioning unit for a population of 1.2 million people.  They provide in addition a laboratory, several ultrasound machines, endoscopy, culposcopy, EKG and soon EEG examinations.  The most amazing aspect is the whole clinic is paperless.  All medical records, lab results and results of examinations are available on site via computer to all clinic physicians.  This computer program was developed completely by their in-house IT technician.  Truly amazing, since my office in Maryland was not totally paperless.

Next we visited their satellite clinic which serves 8,000 people from 13 villages.  At the clinic we found the same warm atmosphere.  The staff at both locations seemed happy to be at work and showed genuine concern for the patients they were serving.  These clinics were truly being salt and light to the patients and the surrounding communities.  While only the leadership are Christians, they are raising the standard of care in the community and attracting qualified professionals to work at the clinic.

Before we boarded the train to return to Kyiv we were privileged to share a meal with Dr. Pavel, his wife and Dr. Vasyl, his partner.  The food was delicious and the fellowship even sweeter.  At the end of the evening we paused to pray for God to work in the hearts of healthcare professionals and patients throughout Ukraine and his blessing upon the work of the Christian Clinic, UMO and the work we can accomplish together for his kingdom.