[vc_row top_margin=”page_margin_top” el_position=”first”][vc_column top_margin=”none”][vc_column_text el_class=”no_margin”]
What is Crosspoint Global Health?
Crosspoint Global Health is a Christian collaborative health outreach in developing countries. We understand that Jesus’ healing ministry includes physical, mental, emotional, spiritual and social health, and that Global Health refers to collaborative action on health issues and services for individuals and populations from around the world. The Crosspoint Global Health ministry works alongside local churches for transforming communities into healthier places to live. Functioning at the grassroots level, health professionals and other volunteers team up with health facilities, community workers, and churches in under-served areas. Joint efforts are designed to strengthen the capability of local workers in health services.
Our Mission
“He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal.” (Luke 9:2)
Our Focus
Collaborating with the local church in community health outreach.
Goals
- To improve the quality and reach of health services
- To improve the capability of healthcare providers
Objectives
Identify local issues (i.e. behavioral, spiritual, cultural, and systemic) that help and hurt the health of people
- Support community oriented primary care services in under-served areas
- Promote implementation of effective health and nutrition programs for children and mothers
- Provide healthcare staff training for primary care and public health
- Collaborate in research activity with health facilities
- Facilitate water, sanitation, and environmental health services
- Coordinate service-learning-mission opportunities for students and volunteers
- Assist the formation of Christian discipling communities
- Encourage the proclamation, study and life application of God’s Word
What are CGH’s challenges?
Health problems impact all levels of global society with the poor and marginalized especially affected. People living in the developing world suffer more often from life threatening diseases. Opportunities to access and utilize quality primary health care services are limited. Children and mothers from poor families are particularly vulnerable to disease, ignorance and oppression.
For example, in Ghana children under 15 years make up 41% of household members (Ghana DHS 2008). One out of five homes has orphans or children less than 18 years old not living with a parent. Among women aged 15-49 years, only 63% are literate, while 21% have no formal education. Four out of 10 patients visiting clinics and hospitals have malaria, the leading cause of death in children less than five years. One out of four children under five years is chronically malnourished. Almost one out of 12 children dies before reaching five years of age. Only six out of 10 pregnant women deliver their babies in a health facility with a skilled birth attendant.
In resource-limited settings, human and financial resources are in short supply, technical equipment and logistical capacity is limited, and infrastructural development inadequate. Despite these constraints, appropriate, acceptable, and affordable services for preventing and controlling disease are needed. Proven health and nutrition programs must be effectively implemented by trained healthcare providers. We believe that health problems are best addressed through culturally relevant, Christ-centered, collaborative, and holistic approaches. Crosspoint Global Health exists as part of the Body of Christ to support community health outreach by the local church.
Primary activities
CGH Global Health Internships
CGH facilitates Global Health Internships for visiting students and volunteers.
Description
CGH develops relationships with Christian health workers, clinics and hospitals around the world. We facilitate internships and volunteer service opportunities for medical students, residents, and healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, physical therapists and others. We also collaborate with like-minded organizations seeking to encourage the next generation of global health workers. Current opportunities for service are in Ghana and India.
Mobile medical clinics
Working with local and international partners, CGH coordinates mobile medical clinics to support church health outreaches.
Description
CGH helps organize and operate mobile medical clinics in underserved areas. We collaborate with existing regional health services as well as local and national church organizations to provide general medical care to villages that lack reasonable access to primary medical care. We utilize both nationals and expatriates to staff our clinics which helps enhance our spirit of unity. In addition to general medicine, we provide health screenings to primary schools, and are developing specialty clinics where needed to enhance the level of care provided locally. Our clinics make use of appropriate rapid diagnostic testing and are developing a health informatics system to improve the care we provide. Much of our recent work has been done throughout Ghana, West Africa, but we are working with others across the globe exploring areas where we might be of service.
School health screenings
CGH works with local partners and coordinates health screening for schools.
Description
Education and health are universal values. Education is a part of healthy living, and without good health, learning is compromised. That’s why we support schools in developing countries that seek to provide a good education AND good health for their students.
CGH collaborates with rural schools like the Royal Christian Academy in Ghana to enhance education through health screening. Whether by evaluating student growth parameters, development milestones, immunization status, vision, or hearing, CGH works with teachers and parents to identify opportunities to improve child health and education.
Health seminars and workshops
CGH organizes and/or coordinates health seminars and workshops in clinical care and public health for additional training.
Description
CGH is committed to promoting medical education in resource poor settings. Practicing medicine is difficult enough in the developed world where information and consultants are just a mouse-click or phone call away. It is even more so in areas without the underlying technical infrastructure. Therefore, a goal of CGH is to provide medical education through health seminars and workshops with hands-on training to build upon the skills of those health care professionals working in lower resource settings.
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]