In 2023, Misean Cara supported our members with more than €3.1m in funding for health projects in areas including:
€616,778
Communicable Diseases
€683,535
Basic Healthcare
€369,283
Reproductive Healthcare
€193,808
Water, Sanitation & Hygiene
A disturbing statistic illustrates why providing basic healthcare is a priority for many Misean Cara members: in Africa, a mother is 40 times more likely to die from complications during and following pregnancy and childbirth than a mother delivering in Europe.*
Working on the ground, Misean Cara members understand that improving people’s health doesn’t always require complex solutions.
Access to basic services and facilities can transform the health of millions worldwide. Clean water, sanitation and hygiene, and good nutrition are fundamental rights that missionaries continue to deliver in their communities. From solar pumps and boreholes in South Sudan to water harvesting in Kenya and improving access to toilets in remote Zambian schools, simple projects supported by Misean Cara members have a profound and long-lasting impact.
Beyond basic healthcare, communities face other challenges. For example, the Franciscan Missionaries of the Divine Motherhood offer elderly patients in occupied Gaza essential treatments for conditions like cardiovascular disease, strokes and diabetes. This is given free of charge to an especially marginalised group that development funding projects often overlook. In Gaza, quality healthcare is in short supply for everyone, especially the elderly. Misean Cara’s funding of healthcare for this group is a clear expression of missionaries living up to their commitment to reach the furthest behind.
TANZANIA
Bringing healthcare, dignity and empowerment to people living with HIV and AIDS
In Singida, Tanzania, the Medical Missionaries of Mary (MMMs) operate the Faraja Community Based Healthcare Centre (FCBHC) to serve the needs of poor people in this remote district of nearly two million people.
Established in 2002 to provide the first Voluntary Counselling and Test (VCT) service during the country’s ongoing HIV and AIDS epidemic, the Faraja Centre’s outreach-based service model has expanded to include cancer patients needing palliative care, persons with disabilities, survivors of gender-based violence (GBV) and those affected by human trafficking (HT).
In Tanzania, an estimated 35% of the population dies of cancer each year. Cancer diagnoses often come at a late stage, with palliative care being the only treatment option left. However, very few patients have access to palliative care services due to vast distances to healthcare facilities, patients’ inability to travel, limited training of clinical staff and shortages of trained professionals. The FCBHC programme provides holistic, in-home palliative care and hospice services to 250 cancer patients in the community every year. To ensure a higher calibre of caregiving, palliative care health workers receive additional training in patient care and are equipped with bicycles to facilitate their outreach into communities to deliver care and to conduct awareness raising and education.
An awareness raising programme that informs people about human trafficking, HIV and AIDS, sexually transmitted infections and gender-based violence aims to influence attitudes, behaviours and knowledge about these critical public safety and health issues. In Singida, an increase in cases of HIV is anticipated in the wake of the pandemic lockdowns. FCBHC’s Voluntary Counselling and Test services will increase their reach to 1,500 people each year and will include counselling and health care support.