Medical Relief

Many refugees have minor-to-serious conditions needing medical attention. Skin disorders, (Leprosy, and Scabies) Malaria, Cholera, TB, cleft pallets, diarrhea, eye and ear disorders are common.

During village attacks many refugees have lost limbs, been shot, hacked with machetes, undergone forced circumcised, and have been physically violated in the most personal and horrific ways. Many are in need of expensive and skilled medical procedures to restore their broken conditions.

Malnutrition remains a problem among certain groups. Christians have fled to the jungle for safety when their villages were attacked. Unsafe to return to their homes, they were forced to survive on limited food foraged in the jungle, sometimes for long periods.

IFC has a medical clinic staffed with 30 providers that offer medical treatment to 200-300 refugees a week. The medical staff is highly qualified, bringing healing to wounds and disease, offering clinics in the refugee centers and remote villages. These services are offered free of charge and no one is turned away.

Medical teams from the United States, Singapore, Australia and South Korea have come to this region and partnered with the IFC medical staff to provide specialized care to the needy.

The IFC medical clinic works in cooperation with the Indonesian department of Health. IFC chooses local Indonesian doctors to provide oversight to their medical work.

IFC has trained 14 Indonesian health care workers in 2002 and another 20 are being trained in 2003. They are educated in basic health care for tropical regions.