by: Billy Ray | Sr. Director, Middle East
As World Orphans passes its 15th year serving in Northern Iraq, we want to share a story from one of our doctors who has been working with us since early 2019. Dr. Sam, Dr. Isaac, and Dr. Brett, could have used their advanced medical degrees and training to earn a substantial salary for themselves and their families in the United States. Instead, they have chosen to join with us in “going to the low places,” where the needs of refugees are found at the very bottom of society’s concerns. We are honored to have them on our team in Northern Iraq and believe their steady, consistent care for the ‘least of these’ speaks volumes to the greater community about the power and love found in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Last year, as our doctors on the World Orphans team in Iraq approached the end of their formal language learning, they asked the Lord how he would have them use their medical skills in Northern Iraq. Through prayer, they felt led to consider the vulnerable and underserved families in their community, to go to the “low places,” as water naturally flows to low-lying ground. Children with disabilities quickly came to their minds and hearts.
In these areas, children with disabilities spend most of their time indoors as there are very few activities available to them, and families are often embarrassed by or ashamed of the child’s condition. The medical system is unable to provide the longitudinal care that children with disabilities need, so they are bounced from emergency room to clinic, where the staff are often unfamiliar with the child’s case. Shame shrouds many families in a cloak of fear and embarrassment, and they don’t know what to do.
After conversing with the local authorities and medical staff, the World Orphans team enrolled several children with disabilities in a pilot program that follows them regularly at the clinic and through home visits. In partnership with the families and local medical personnel, they track physical growth, adjust medications, and put together physical therapy regimens for the parents to do with their children at home.
On a recent visit to the home of Muhammed, an 11-year-old with a progressive muscular disorder that is slowly degrading the use of his arms and legs, Dr. Sam was able to fit him with custom-made braces to begin straightening his ankles, helping to slow and possibly reverse some of the debilitating effects of the disease.
Our World Orphans doctors track the progress of Muhammed’s physical therapy each week, as well as monitor the condition of his heart following a recent illness. It is during visits like these that we are able to personally meet with the family to communicate updates and help them better understand Muhammed’s condition. This reassures the family, taking pressure off them and shows that their child is loved and valued.
In some cases, through our partnership with the medical authorities in the city and with other NGOs, we are able to provide patients with wheelchairs, enabling families to move their children around town without having to physically carry them. Muhammed’s family recently celebrated their new wheelchair by taking a trip to a nearby city and sending a video to our doctors, thanking them for their help.
It is opportunities to serve like these that have opened up doors to pray with these families and to speak to them about the hope that God can bring. As the Water of Life flows into these homes, our prayer is for deep refreshment and healing that overflows in changed, joy-filled lives.
Thank you for your partnership in this vital work to bring God’s hope and care to the “low places” in communities around the world.