Content Resources

About 25 years ago, while sharing an early morning cup of coffee with my dear friend and practice partner, family physician John Hartman, MD, he asked, “Walt, how come we don’t bring our faith to work with us more often?” It was a question the Lord used to convict me of the fact that although my personal relationship with God was the primary and most important relationship in my life, more often than not I tended to leave Him at the door when entering the hospital or medical office. The question was the catalyst for this talk: Spiritual Interventions in Patient Care. Research findings, a desire to provide high-quality care, and simple common sense, all underscore the need to integrate spirituality into patient care. It is highly ethical for healthcare professionals and healthcare systems to assess their patients’ spiritual health and needs and to provide indicated and desired spiritual interventions. Clinicians and health care systems should not deprive their patients of the spiritual support and comfort on which their hope, health, wellbeing, and longevity may hinge. Before you get started, I must share this caution from Stephen Post, PhD: “Professional problems can occur when well-meaning healthcare professionals ‘faith-push’ a patient opposed to discussing religion.” However, on the other side of the coin, “rather than ignoring faith completely with all patients, most of whom want to discuss it, we can explore which of our patients are interested and who are not.” Simply put, a spiritual assessment can help us do this with each patient we see. We can potentially gain the following from a spiritual assessment: The patient’s religious background, The role that religious or spiritual beliefs or practices play in coping with illness (or causing distress), Beliefs that may influence or conflict with decisions about medical care,  The patient’s level of participation in a spiritual community and whether the community is supportive, and ‹ Any spiritual needs that might be present. Several fairly-easy-to-use mnemonics have been designed to help health professionals, such as the “GOD” spiritual assessment I developed for CMDA’s Saline Solution: G = God: − May I ask your faith background? Do you have a spiritual or faith preference? Is God, spirituality, religion or spiritual faith important to you now, or has it been in the past? O = Others: − Do you now meet with others in religious or spiritual community, or have you in the past? If so, how often? How do you integrate with your faith community? D = Do: − What can I do to assist you in incorporating your spiritual or religious faith into your medical care? Or, is there anything I can do to encourage your faith? May I pray with or for you? However, this and other spiritual assessment tools fail to inquire about a critical item involving spiritual health: any religious struggles the patient may be having. A robust literature shows religious struggles can predict mortality, as there is an inverse association between faith and morbidity and mortality of various types. Sir William Osler, one of the founding professors of Johns Hopkins Hospital and frequently described as the “Father of Modern Medicine,” wrote, “Nothing in life is more wonderful than faith…the one great moving force which we can neither weigh in the balance nor test in the crucibIe - mysterious, indefinable, known only by its effects, faith pours out an unfailing stream of energy while abating neither jot nor tittle of its potence.” You can experience that driving force of faith when you apply these principles of spiritual assessment in your practice of healthcare, thereby allowing you to minister to your patients in ways you never imagined possible, while also increasing personal and professional satisfaction. One doctor recently shared with me, “Ministering in my practice has allowed God to bear fruit in and through me in new and wonderful ways. I can’t wait to see what He’s going to do in and through me each day. My practice and I have been transformed.”

Brain drain of healthcare workers is a huge challenge in low income countries, particularly in rural areas, and yet these locations represent arguably the greatest healthcare needs in the world. This session will discuss rural medical education as a potential solution to brain drain in raising up compassionate, competent healthcare workers in the local setting.

This session will address five common misconceptions about missions that are based on assumptions and conspire to prevent people from exploring their own fit in mission.

this session will describe the magnitude of human trafficking in the US and globally. It will look at the typical health problems of this group , clues that a patient may be a trafficked victim, and suggestions for treatment principles for them

Using a Functional Medicine Model as a Paradigm to Help Our Patients with Chronic Illness Improve

A Partnership with long term missionaries, Indigenous evangelists and a short term medical training team in one of the most persecuted areas in the world brings light to the darkness.

Ten days ago, Alabama reported that they had zero confirmed cases of COVID-19. When pressed, it turns out that Alabama had done almost no testing. This inspired Dr. Robert Record, CEO for Christ Health Center (CHC) in Birmingham, to take the initiative to find testing for their patients. Last week Christ Health Center, in partnership with Church of the Highlands and a local testing lab, opened a drive-through testing center. In five days they performed 2267 tests. They have received just over 2200 results back, and had 73 people test positive for COVID-19. Robert had a contact with the founder of a private testing lab who had been trying to implement testing, but was overwhelmed. He visited his friend one Saturday, and listened to him talk about the challenges that the lab was not prepared to meet. Robert proposed that Christ Health set up and do the tests, while allowing the lab to process the respiratory panels, which is what they were good at doing. Robert and his team met with the leaders of Church of the Highlands, a mega church where Dr. Record and a number of the staff attend, and a church that has been a close partner throughout the development of CHC. In only a few days they designed a drive-through testing model that is a national model of efficiency, trained staff and a small army of volunteers, published a video, and implemented the largest testing center in the state, and one of the largest in the country. If all of this sounds like something slapped together, watch this nine-minute video: https://www.covid19-testing.churchofthehighlands.com. It is impressive. Almost immediately, Dr. Record and his team began thinking about how those who would test positive would receive care. As he was praying early one morning, he got a picture in his head of what they should do. They trained UAB (University of Alabama at Birmingham), which is the largest hospital system and employer in the state, how to do the testing. Christ Health has now turned their drive-through testing over to them. Simultaneously, they constructed four “bubble rooms” in the building next to their clinic to care for sick patients. These plywood and plexiglass exam rooms allow the doctor to interact with the patient, but from the safety of being on the other side of the glass. They instituted a text-to-access system for positive patients. They started seeing COVID+ patients today (3/25) to work out any bugs in their system. Christ Health’s medical director, Dr. Cleon Rogers, is overseeing “COVID-Care” for the 73 positive cases that they tested who are not hospitalized, plus is taking non-UAB patients who test positive through UAB’s efforts. They provide safe, best-practice care for all of their COVID positive patients primarily through telehealth calls and visits. They do frequent telehealth check-ins—daily for high severity patients, and every other day for low severity patients. They created an internal “off label” use protocol in conjunction with academic infectious disease and cardiology to offer hydroxychloroquine/azithromycin treatment with informed consent for their high risk COVID positive patients. They provide wholistic care for their COVID positive patients, including, where needed, food and prescription delivery, and spiritual care. They do this in collaboration with their church partners. While they are only six days into this COVID-Care program, so far none of their patients have required hospitalization. “Being able to keep 73 people at home is huge! And we are not just providing for those 73. Each one of them live with family members, and we are providing this care to everyone in the house during their quarantine”, said Dr. Rogers. If this model proves fruitful, Dr. Rogers will be sharing this resource with the medical community soon via a paper and video. We post those links on the CCHF website when they become available. How has this impacted their other primary care efforts? Christ Health does a fairly large volume of behavioral health work, and those visits seem unphased so far. In terms of medical visits, they continue to see their mental health and higher risk patients, but in-office volume is down by about 50%. The rest of their work is going forward through telehealth. You might wonder how all of their efforts are funded. Christ Health is an FQHC, and some of the visits and testing are billable. But uninsured patients are tested for free, and they opted to not collect any copays for their insured patients. They raised no money for any of this. “We were ‘action first’, and then trust God for resources. We don’t want to be fiscally irresponsible, but God has met both us and our patients.” said Dr. Record. “We saw what was and wasn’t happening, and we entered into the pain of our patients and my friend at the lab. We knew we had to do something, and show that it could be done quickly.” Private funders, having heard about their work, have sent unrequested donations after the fact. That has helped. The state health department has provided little or no help. The government mechanism was simply moving too slow. To date, 80% of COVID-19 testing statewide is being done by the private lab that partners with Christ Health; and 25% of all COVID positive patients in Alabama are now receiving care through Christ Health. Dr. Record, Dr. Rogers, and their team are well ahead of most of us in the CCHF community, and wide open to share processes and procedures with other CCHF clinics. Dr. Record: “If you are going to share one thing with the other clinics, tell them that we need to turn our attentions, energy, and resources from testing to treatment. That is where we need to be leading at this point in the curve.” Dr. Rogers: “We should not underestimate the impact of spiritual care for these patients. God has opened doors for me to provide meaningful spiritual ministry to my patients every day.” Download full ebook "A Healthcare Worker's Response to COVID-19" here​

The origination of the idea behind 'A Practical Guide to the Complex Issue of Addiction' was to approach battling addiction from a non-medical practitioners experience and view of addiction and those suffering from addiction. The session painted a broad picture of addiction locally, around the country and around the world to set up the question, 'What do I do about it?' From there, we discussed practical signs and symptoms of someone battling addiction and action steps for those wishing to help. In the midst of this, we discovered that truly helping someone battling addiction oftentimes requires some of the most difficult decisions of your life. Through real-life examples, attendee participation and practical application, hopefully attendees and listeners can find a nugget of hope in the midst of the devastating effects of addiction.

There is a story in the Old Testament about the tribes of Israel coming to David before he was made king. Each tribe was described by their skill set. The skill set of the smallest tribe stands out most to me: the sons of Issachar, who “understood the times and knew what Israel should do.” This pandemic of both virus and fear needs us to be sons of Issachar—understanding the times—knowing what to do. It is not enough to rely on our training, because none of us were trained for this. Crises like this tend to expose our weaknesses. My instinct is to try to cover up my weaknesses, to bluff my way through. (Ask me how well that has worked over the years!) The truth is that understanding comes from humility and seeking. Confident leadership comes from a place of faith and peace. We cannot lead through chaos unless we come from a place of peace. Humility embraces our weaknesses and acknowledges that we have something to learn—that we need help from God and from those he has placed in our lives. That must be our starting point. I got a call this morning from someone who was conflicted about how to handle a situation in their clinic related to the pandemic. We talked a bit, but then we prayed. We acknowledged that too much of our thought was influenced by frustration, emotion, and partial information. We asked God for wisdom to help us discern between wisdom and fear. And we asked for the courage to do what is right. When we finished, I think we both found peace and had a better understanding and knowledge to do what needed to be done. This pandemic is affecting CCHF clinics (Christian Community Health Fellowship). Some are committed to maintaining their role as primary care providers. Others see their roles shifting toward patient education during this season. Some are leading testing stations, while others are reallocating resources to support local hospitals. Most are finding that the ability to provide spiritual ministry through prayer is a great asset during this crisis. According to the New York Times, New York state has roughly 5% of coronavirus cases worldwide, and New York City has over 25% of all COVID-19 patients in the US. It is hard to imagine the city that never sleeps with near empty streets in the middle of the day; but the city has closed all non-essential businesses and gatherings, and most folks now seem to be taking it seriously. But there has been conflicting messaging from local, state, and federal sources about the virus, and it has created an atmosphere of fear and confusion. Beacon Christian Community Health Center, located on Staten Island, is living up to its name. Beacon is a Christ-centered, long-time member of the CCHF community. Its founders, Drs. David and Janet Kim, were tailor-made for a situation like this. David is a med/peds doc with training in emergency preparedness, and Janet, also a med/peds doc, is trained in epidemiology. After Hurricane Sandy hit New York in 2012, the Kims played a significant role in setting up emergency medical care for Staten Island. They consulted other CCHF clinics after hurricanes Harvey and Irma, and have offered workshops on emergency preparedness. It is almost like they were born for this. “God has called us to be a beacon during this crisis. There is so much fear and misinformation out there. A big part of our role is to help people respect this virus, but not fear it,” David said. “Our numbers are down. Everyone’s numbers are down. But our phones are ringing off the wall with people who are terrified and panicking. It’s like everything they built their lives around is crumbling. I can’t tell you how powerful it is to share with them that God is still in control, and that He cares about them.” David shared that during this crisis, there were really three main roles they felt they were to fulfill. First, they were to be a beacon to the people of New York—to be a visible pillar of truth and peace, helping them understand the facts in a way that empowers them and dispels fear. Second, they were to keep showing up, taking care of all of the things that people can’t go to the hospital for now. They are still providing full scope primary care, and making sure their patients have continuity of care. And third, they are deeply involved at the state and local level with the health departments and hospitals, facilitating reliable exchange of information and coordinated care. I asked David about some specific ways they are walking out their role, and about how the pandemic has impacted their work: Their patient volume is down by approximately 25% due to increased no-shows, but they are still providing full service primary care. About half of their patient encounters are in-office, and half are telemedicine. That seems to be working pretty well. Telehealth visits with video for Medicaid patients are billable, and they hope that when Congress passes the relief bill this week that telehealth visits with Medicare patients will also be billable. Their staff is doing well, in part because of the clear protocols and systems they have put into place, and in greater part because they are people whose faith in God and dedication to the mission is strong. They have set up a dedicated space inside the clinic for patients who present with symptoms, have had exposure to someone with COVID-19, or have visited countries where there has been an outbreak of the virus. They are following CDC guidelines to the letter. They find social media to be particularly important right now. Their social media presence and messaging has generated a lot of phone calls for information, and a lot of ministry opportunities as they address anxiety and fear among their neighbors. The team at Beacon has always strived to love people well, and to respectfully and boldly share the hope we have in Christ. As we talked today, I was reminded that we help our patients and neighbors find inexplicable and unshakable peace when we direct them to take their anxieties to God in prayer (Philippians 4:6-7). That goes for us, too. Download full ebook "A Healthcare Worker's Response to COVID-19" here

Fear and panic seem to be running rampant across the globe as the COVID-19 pandemic wreaks havoc in one continent, country, and community at a time. As healthcare professionals and missionaries, many of us will be on the front lines battling this pandemic, caring for the sick and vulnerable. As believers in Christ, we have the amazing opportunity to stand boldly in faith and dispel fear and panic with God’s peace and truth. However, if you are like me, as this crisis has intensified, perhaps you have found yourself wrestling with fear in very real ways. Prayer is the antidote to fear as God is calling His body to stand in courage. How do we honestly and humbly address our fears with faith and hope in our Almighty God? Perhaps, it is helpful to look at the biblical origin of fear. It shows up almost immediately on the scene in Genesis 3 after Adam and Eve commit the first sin. The sweet fellowship they enjoyed with their Maker is now disrupted by their fear of God, so much that they hide from him. That is what fear does. It disrupts our trust in our Father and challenges our identity as His children. But prayer provides an opportunity and extends an invitation for us to connect to the heart of our Abba Father. Romans 8:15-17 says it so beautifully, “For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs— heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” Our sonship in Christ must be the foundation of our prayers. Our identity in Christ as His heir diminishes fear and gives us immeasurable authority to proclaim God’s truth and promises over every seemingly difficult and impossible circumstance we experience. Prayer is undoubtedly one of the most powerful tools we have in this pandemic. As believers in Christ, we have the opportunity to engage in the spiritual battles going on around us with wisdom and grace, standing in a place of victory in Christ. What are some practical ways we can do this? Be honest with the Lord about your fear. We must confess it and not feel shame. Bring it into the light before the Lord and let Him shine His truth on every concern and worry hiding in our hearts. God knows our frame and understands that we are weak. He promises that His power is made perfect in our frailty. Write down your fears and then ask the Lord to speak His promises over them. Find Scriptures to renounce the lies of the enemy. Turn in repentance toward faith and trust in Your Heavenly Father. Immerse your mind and heart in truth. The Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword. His Word has power to defeat the lies of the enemy and to give us proper perspective on what is happening around us. The Bible also provides words for our emotions and concerns. The Psalms are a beautiful catalog of prayers that reflect the doubts and lament of the writers of Scripture. We can take great solace in knowing we are not alone in our struggles, yet also find verbiage for our praises! Praise Him! Declare the names of God over your circumstances and praise Him for who He is! He is the Alpha and Omega, Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace! Christ is before all things and in Him all things hold together! God rules and reigns in perfect love and justice and His Kingdom is being established in the midst of tragedy and chaos. Ask for God’s grace to practice gratitude and thankfulness in the midst of hard things. This may be the perfect opportunity to start a gratitude journal listing 5-10 unique things a day you can thank the Lord for providing. Engage in prayer with the body of Christ. There is nothing more powerful than when two or three are gathered in the name of Jesus, seeking His heart and interceding. Utilize three-way calls or live online chats. Set-up 24-hour prayer vigils and invite friends and family to take a 30-60 minute time slot. Meet weekly with a few neighbors to pray or set-up a time each week to connect with a missionary overseas to pray. These are just a few suggestions. Ask the Lord how He might want to grow and strengthen your prayer life during this time. Be obedient to what He lays on your heart. You can trust him as the Author and Perfecter of your faith. Let us rejoice in expectation of what He will do and the joy of joining Him in His redemptive work! “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” -Ephesians 3:20-21 Download full ebook "A Healthcare Worker's Response to COVID-19" here

Marriage, Family and Missions:- Joys, Challenges, and Pitfalls- Reflections from those who have walked (and stubbled on) this road before. (2 hour intensive)

I have been pondering in my heart this sudden grounding of travel and thus missions. My job is sending out healthcare mission teams around the globe. We have, or should I say had 58 teams going to 25 different countries in the next year. We have now grounded 14 of them with the end of our “no gos” uncertain. On a much smaller scale, I have been here before. I was on a mission to Vietnam that was canceled two hours before I was to leave for the airport. I was informed a few days beforehand of this possibility, but as the time got close, I had my hopes up more and more. So, the sudden loss was so disappointing. I don’t have the time for details, but looking back on this just a few short months later it turned out that it was a blessing, as I used that time off to visit my aging parents. I am sure most remember the Nicaragua protesting and crisis that basically shut the country down for over a year. Global Health Outreach (CMDA) sends 10 teams a year into Nicaragua, so this sudden turn of events was devastating to us. We had to cancel eight of ten missions that year. But mostly, many of our team members go back year after year. They have developed close relationships with our incountry director and his team there, and they were devastated. We organized a relief fund to continue to help them financially while we were not able to go. Our hearts were breaking because it felt a bit like abandoning them in their time of need. So, if anyone is feeling that hurt and guilt, I understand. But here is the thing. While we did not go back for almost a year and a half, our mighty God and Savior was with them the whole time. And because no teams were coming in, they learned how to help each other through this tough time. Many told us they realized they had strayed from the Lord and were brought back into his loving embrace through this struggle. When we were finally able to send a team back into a hurting country, we were superexcited and talked much beforehand about encouraging them and helping them. But our team was blown away by the spiritual growth and maturity. They shared with our team how God had been using that time to refine them. I was in South America last month, serving on a human trafficking team to Bolivia. It was our first mission to this area, and they were blown away by our kind, loving team willing to come alongside them and support their ministry and help the women they have a heart and passion to save for eternity. They, like many, are learning a new trade and way to support themselves to stay out of “the life,” as they call it. Their business was in making fabric and leather goods, handbags, and jewelry. With this COVID-19 crisis, their business is currently shut down. This will be extremely difficult for their ministry, as it will be for ours and yours, only on a much larger scale, as they do not have the resources our country does. This saddens me, as I know you each have your own story to tell of bringing help and hope to the least, the last, and the lost. But we should all remember, while we are not going, God is with them. He will not leave them nor forsake them. Or you. I know we are all struggling with this, but know this; obedience sometimes means not going. Not serving and being still. Very hard for the American as we have perfected busy-ness. Submit to this call to be still. And while you are pondering and waiting, cultivate your relationship with our Lord. Because we will eventually be going once again. Let’s have this time make a difference as well! My best advice, after years of going and serving on the mission field is found in Psalm 27:14 “Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage, wait for the Lord”. Sometimes, being obedient is to wait. Let’s all commit to using this season to draw closer to Him. And one day soon, I’ll see you on the mission field! Download full ebook "A Healthcare Worker's Response to COVID-19" here