Christian Health Services - Preamble - The healing ministry of the church is expressed in many ways. Over the last century, Christian health services have been a tangible and visible expression of the love of God and the compassion of the church. In many countries, church-run health services form a significant part of health services even today, sometimes providing over 50% of the national health care. In some other countries, health care in the spirit of Christ is the only witness acceptable and permissible. However, over the last 25 years Christian health services, especially mission hospitals, have not been central to the healing ministry of the church at the global level. In the face of globalisation, commercialisation of health care, loss of values in health systems and overwhelming challenges of diseases like HIV/AIDS and mental illness, it is recommended that the church reaffirm the place of health care in its healing ministry.

Christian Health Services - Top Issues for the Next Years - Reintegration of Health Concerns into the overall Ecumenical Agenda Human Resources Development + Education Promoting Christian Health Services through Institutions and Primary Health Care Investing in Mental Health Nurturing Family Health Up-Scaling Churches‘ Response to HIV/AIDS

Reintegration of health concerns into the overall ecumenical agenda –Expand the capacity and mandate of the WCC unit on healing and wholeness to provide leadership for the churches‘ involvement in Christian health services –Create a global networking and facilitating platform in which exchange and interaction between Christian initiatives, associations and researchers in health and healing can be continued on a more permanent and continuous basis

Ecumenical Cooperation and International Networks To create a global platform in which exchange and interaction between Christian Health Associations, researchers in Health and Healing as well as representatives from networks of missiology and ecumenics can be continued on a permanent and more continuous basis. The Network should be linked to the WCC, but also wider than its constituency and independent from WCC financial resources (similar like WOCATE). It could be considered whether a Global Ecumenical Forum for Research and Exchange on Christian Health Services and Holistic Healing (GEF-CHH) could be launched.

Ecumenical Cooperation and International Networks WCC EDAN National church health associations like CMAI, CHAK, EHA ICMDA, CCIH, CMF WHO mhGAP UNAIDS GFATM Partnership for Maternal, Neonatal and Child Health Global Forum for Health Research AMREF

Reintegration of health concerns into the overall ecumenical agenda –Building-up evidence on Christian health services through projects like ARHAP in order to support advocacy on a global level –Creation of a website on „Faith, Health and Healing“

Human Resources Development + Education –Development of strategies to promote equitable distribution of health staff within and between countries –Interdisciplinary training for Christian health services (including where necessary the training of health professionals of all levels) –Leadership development in health and healing –Ecumenical textbook on health, faith and healing

The voice of the Christian tradition in holistic healing and health care and the heritage of CMC needs to be made more visible in training and education programmes for both pastors, doctors and health care professionals. The calling together of an international group of scholars developing an ecumenical textbook on health, faith and healing would be essential. The textbook could bring together key documents from the history of CMC, key articles on denominational and contextual approaches on faith, health and healing, the concept of health, the understanding of healing ministries, the importance of culture in understating health and healing as well as the most crucial contemporary ethical and controversial themes in this area. The textbook would be offered to training institutions, colleges and research institutes and would present a new and distinct profile of CMC and mission within the WCC member churches and beyond.

Promoting Christian Health Services through Institutions and Primary Health Care (I) –Reiterate the vision for „Health for All“ with a special focus on vulnerable and marginalised communities (health as defined by WCC) –Reaffirm and strengthen both institutions and primary health care as valuable parts of the healing ministry of the church –Integrating Christian health interventions into the goal of social transformation –Support and strengthen Christian health associations and pharmaceutical health agencies and facilitate networking for learning and information sharing –Developing sustainable strategies for health care financing

Health is a dynamic state of well-being of the individual and society; of physical, mental, spiritual, economic, political and social well-being; of being in harmony with each other, with the material environment, and with God. Important to well ‑ being is our dynamic contact with the Source of our Being and, as Christians, we believe that it is through Jesus Christ that we find life.

Promoting Christian Health Services through Institutions and Primary Health Care (II) –Reiterate the vision for „Health for All“ with a special focus on vulnerable and marginalised communities (health as defined by WCC) –Reaffirm and strengthen both institutions and primary health care as valuable parts of the healing ministry of the church –Integrating Christian health interventions into the goal of social transformation –Support and strengthen Christian health associations and pharmaceutical health agencies and facilitate networking for learning and information sharing –Developing sustainable strategies for health care financing

Promoting Christian Health Services through Institutions and Primary Health Care (III) –Developing mechanisms for quality assurance in Christian health services –Promote training in ethical decision making in health care and establish fora for discussion and development for culturally appropriate ethical guidelines for health care and research –Developing strategies for factors underlying ill-health based on local realities such as Poverty reduction Injury/violence prevention Gender Healthy life styles –Adressing local health priorities

Investing in Mental Health Partnering the Mental Health WHO Global Action Programme (mhGAP)

Training of service providers: health services Identify agencies that deliver mental health care services and map areas that are deficient in mental health services In countries with less well developed mental health care services: –Educate and motivate primary health care services to include mental health care as part of their services –Train health care workers to recognize and manage common mental disorders and develop referral systems –Identify and train multidisciplinary health care workers to provide specialist mental health care in secondary care facilities

Training of service providers: churches and congregations Identify and network with agencies that deliver mental health care services Include mental health problems and issues in seminary training programmes as part of training in the healing ministry Sensitize and train pastors, lay leaders and congregational volunteers in the recognition and principles of management of common mental disorders Train pastors, lay leaders and congregational volunteers in pastoral counselling, problem solving, stress management and conflict resolution Provide training in promoting positive mental health, combating stigma, psychosocial rehabilitation

Education and stigma reduction Raise awareness in congregations and communities about mental health problems Challenge the stigma of mental disorders Involve people with mental health problems and mental health advocacy groups in identifying unhelpful and/or stigmatizing attitudes and practices within the church’s response to people with mental health problems Develop guidelines and a policy document for the church’s response to people with mental health problems Educate regarding early recognition of common mental health problems Encourage debate on issues of mental health Domestic violence and intra-familial abuse Substance abuse and dependence Depression and Suicide Stress in everyday life Strengthening family life

Provide services in coordination with local health agencies: I Create a welcoming environment for everyone Offer pastoral counselling and care for people with mental health problems Offer stress management, crisis intervention, bereavement and trauma counselling and conflict resolution services Offer marital and family counselling services Utilize ecumenical pharmaceutical networks to ensure availability of essential mental health drugs to health services where needed

Provide services in coordination with local health agencies: II Provide supportive services: –For victims of violence and abuse (counseling, referral, shelter, advocacy, legal aid) –For people with substance abuse and dependence (motivation to abstain, counseling services, provide support and space for self help groups ( AA etc), encouraging abstinence, relapse prevention) –For people with enduring mental health problems (where state services are less developed) Day centres Vocational rehabilitation and sheltered employment Half way homes and sheltered hostels Foster care Other therapies: music, art, drama, tharapy –For the elderly (where state services are less developed) Befriending, meals, legal aid, practical help –For carers (counselling, respite care) –For vulnerable people Immigrants, homeless, single parents For people with chronic physical diseases –Palliative care Suicide prevention services (telephone help lines, crisis intervention)

Research Document evidence from best practices and successful programmes where churches partner mental health services Promote research into evaluating the role of spirituality and healing in coping with mental disorders Promote research into the role of cohesive communities and families in promoting positive mental health

Advocacy Advocate for rights of those with mental disorders –A transparent and accountable mental health policy and legislation, where needed –Economic issues & Insurance coverage –Human rights violations in treatment settings and in communities –Combat stigma and discrimination in access to care –Include as a disability in national programmes –Right to employment Advocacy in relation to domestic violence and intra- familial abuse Encourage networks of people with mental health problems and carers and involve them in planning and implementing practice, evaluation and research

Funding Dialogue with potential funding agencies and seek funding from donors with budgets for Mental Health promotion and treatment Identify funding for development of curricula, text books, teaching modules, capacity development Mobilize congregational funding for specific programmes

Nurturing Family Health through Church Activities –Research into social and demographic changes and future forms of family structure and life –Creation of a supportive environment for traditional and new forms of familiy life –Transgenerational relationships Power structure in a family Care for the elderly Gender and empowerment

Nurturing Family Health through Health Services –Maternal and Reproductive Health Improving and enabling access to good quality- services Nutrition Cooperating with other service providers Family planning in the individual family –Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health Improving and enabling access to good quality- services Nutrition Cooperating with other service providers –Women‘s and Men‘s Health

Up-Scaling Churches‘ Response to HIV/AIDS (I) –Build on previous work on HIV/AIDS of WCC, which needs to be up-scaled according to local needs and realities –Prevention –Counselling –Treatment Expansion of ART and PMTCT –Care and support (home-based) Ensure adequate follow-up to increase adherence to treatment Nutrition

Up-Scaling Churches‘ Response to HIV/AIDS (II) –Stigma reduction and acceptance Within and outside the Christian communities –Orphans and vulnerable Children Provide support system structures for these children within the community –Advocacy donors, governments, churches

Concluding Statement Integration with Healing Ministry of the Congregation and Advocacy Work –Development of Ecumenical Pastoral Guidelines for Healing Ministries It would be crucial to work on some ecumenical pastoral guidelines for healing ministries in local parishes as well as health related institutions including controversial issues of miraculous healing and excorcism which bring together insights from all sectors of the Christian family both from historical churches as well as Pentecostal and independent churches.