Health Teaching

We have had the opportunity to do some health teachings & devotions at the clinic each morning. Usually when women come in for prenatals, they arrive at 8 am for a devotional and health teaching, and then are seen, first come first served, starting at 9. The devotional usually starts with a worship song and prayer, then we will do an interactive devotion/short bible study. We try to make it simple and entertaining so we can keep the women interested, while teaching central biblical truths. We will then give the women an opportunity to pray and receive the gospel.

Kate & Jesse Anne leading a health teaching

The health teachings cover a variety of topics including: Family Planning, Labor and Delivery, Nutrition and Fetal Development, Newborn and Postpartum, and Breastfeeding. We are doing either all or partial teachings (with help from the national midwives) on each of these topics other than Family Planning. The health teaching usually lasts about 30-45 minutes. We will go through a powerpoint with lots of visual aids to keep the women engaged. We use an interpreter for all of this because the women we are speaking to speak Visayan or Tagalog. 

The most challenging thing we have faced in this is trying to overcome language and cultural barriers. Some women we are sharing with speak English and some don't, some are in their first pregnancy and some their fifth. Our translators really help us out with figuring out how to speak to such a diverse audience, and we have been trying to constantly modify our health teachings and devotions so they can be better understood. The women seem to be receptive of the information presented in both the health teachings and devotionals. We have had so much fun teaching women the Bible, and also getting to educate women about birth!

Please pray for the midwives and other ladies who interpret for us, that they can help explain concepts in a clear, simple way that our patients can understand.