"I’m so thankful to God and the medical team.” Razia and her young son were both sick. “With our low income, we are unable to visit clinics or hospitals for medical examinations, treatment, or to pay for medicine,” continued Razia. But when a mobile clinic, funded by Barnabas Aid, came to the brick kiln where she lives and works, mother and baby got the treatment they needed, free of charge.
Razia and her family had no access to healthcare, until the Barnabas-funded mobile clinic began visiting the brick kiln where they live and work
Not only are medical services too expensive for Christians like Razia, they may also be physically out of reach. Her brick kiln is in a rural area, far away from any healthcare facilities.
Christians in Pakistan often work the lowest paid, dirtiest and most dangerous jobs, such as in sewers, factories or brick kilns and often without proper protective equipment. This can damage their health. What’s more, they cannot access healthcare because of the cost and, in some cases, can’t make the journey to reach a hospital or clinic. And with low or unreliable income, Christian families often have a poor diet, further affecting their health and wellbeing. Bad health can also have a serious effect on the family income: if the breadwinner is too sick to work, there are no wages to take home.
Mobile health clinics – serving Christian communities and saving lives
Through your donations, some of the poorest Christian communities in Pakistan have been blessed by mobile health clinics that bring healthcare to them. A van, with equipment and qualified Christian medical staff, travels to poor Christian communities on a regular basis, to hold a clinic where the patients are.
Christian nurses from mobile health clinics examine Christian labourers at brick kilns, while work continues around them
They offer free checkups and help educate Christians on general health awareness and illness prevention.
Where treatment is needed, they can provide medication for free, alleviating the financial pressure for Christians who cannot afford it.
And if a case is beyond the scope of the clinic, they can arrange for patients to see specialists for further care.
“The nurses, practitioners, and other paramedic staff were always pleasant to us… and most importantly, gave us hope for a better life and health,” reflected Razia.
Other patients have expressed their surprise and delight at the medical teams working in these mobile clinics, who also pray and encourage their patients with Bible verses.
Aslam, his family, and his fellow brick-kiln workers all suffered from an outbreak of eye infections between November 2023 and February 2024. A Barnabas-funded mobile clinic was able to provide medication for free
“There was a severe outbreak that started in November,” said Aslam, a Christian who is employed at another brick kiln. “It was an eye infection that affected all ages – men, women and children – in our village. I was so thankful to Barnabas Aid for helping us with treatment.”
Can you give a gift to help keep these mobile health clinics running?
$27 could cover the average costs to provide medication for 30 Christians who visit a mobile health clinic
$60 could cover the salary of a Christian nurse at a mobile clinic for a week
$92 could provide two weeks of fuel for a mobile health clinic
$1245 Ten gifts of $1245 could provide a van to be converted and used as a mobile health clinic to serve more vulnerable Christian communities in Pakistan
