Tandala medical fund depleted
Why is Tandala Hospital in the difficult straits that it faces now? Some of the issues date back many years, others are more recent. Here are a few:
Since 1996 there has not been missionary medical staff at Tandala. The few that are still connected are either retiring or investing in other ministries. The result is that there are fewer missionary prayer letters telling about the needs at Tandala.- When missionaries were living in Congo, their salaries were covered by the support they raised from their churches. Now that the hospital is staffed by Congolese doctors, their salaries either have to come from patient receipts or from the Tandala Medical Outreach fund.
- The economy in this part of Congo is one of the poorest in the world. The per capita income is less than $100 per year. Most people are subsistence farmers, raising crops on small pieces of land just to feed their families. So when they get sick, there is almost no cash available to pay for care and medicine. Outside of the city of Gemena, it is largely a cashless economy. For example, a hernia operation or C-section is $10 total cost from arrival at the hospital until discharge and very few can even afford that.
- The cost of drugs, while less than in the U.S., is still very high because the drugs come from European or Indian manufacturers. X-ray film, lab supplies, gauze, etc. all come from Western suppliers at Western prices.
The result of all this is that in the last year, and particularly in the last 6 months, the fund has been depleted. Our primary help historically has been to help purchase medications, and to help the CECU pay the salaries for its senior leaders. The hospital staff is planning to cut costs as much as possible.
Would you consider asking your church to make a budget commitment to help support the work at Tandala? A one-time gift would be a big help.
Questions? Contact reachglobal@efca.org.
