I was given so much hope
that we rebuilt many of the buildings
at this rest home."
(director of a TB rest home)
"Thanks to the assistance from
Christian Friends of Korea,
we have had much success
in the treatment of TB patients.
Many of them have been able to go home.
(doctor at a TB hospital)
"Thank you for providing the means
to repair equipment. Parts for these machines are very hard to find.
Because of the parts you have sent,
old equipment is now like new."
(hospital director)
"I am very much obliged to you for
continuing to supply us with food"
(TB rest home director)
Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brothers in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?
Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue,
but with actions and in truth."
- Our work has always been in response to needs that we see and requests that we receive.
- Beginning in 1995, North Korea suffered from floods and drought for several years in a row.
- Simultaneously, the economy contracted significantly leading to widespread hunger, malnutrition, and disease.
- A mountainous country with only 18% of its land considered arable, North Korea, despite its best efforts, has had to rely for the last several years on international aid to sustain its population of 23 million people.
- Tuberculosis, a disease once under control in North Korea, re-emerged in the latter part of the 1990’s as a serious threat to the population.
- While it can be deadly if untreated, tuberculosis can be cured if a patient is given the proper treatment.
- The number of registered Tuberculosis cases has gone from 52,000 in 2007 to over 100,000 this year.
- There is only enough medicine in the country this year to treat 52,000 patients.
In our early years, we responded to a great and immediate need for food by shipping thousands of tons of rice, wheat, corn, soybeans and other food items. While we continue to send some food regularly, it is now sent as part of the general assistance we provide in coordination with various partner organizations. We ship food in the form of canned meat, soybeans, and nutritional supplements to help the facilities we support care for their tuberculosis and pediatric patients.
Technical Assistance to TB Facilities
In addition to the general supplies provided to the TB facilities we support, we also help by providing technical assistance to help solve larger problems. Such projects have included supplying and installing diesel generators at each of the three tuberculosis hospitals we support, installing an x-ray unit at one of the hospitals, and assisting with the drilling of a water well and a new water distribution system for one of the hospitals.
We regularly assist tuberculosis facilities in a multifaceted way, meeting their many needs with:
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commercial size greenhouses, tractors, seeds and other supplies to help the staff at theses facilities grow vegetables and greens so necessary for patient health.
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general medicines and vitamins needed to improve patient health and treat other ailments that TB patients suffer from such as fever, cough and digestive problems.
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basic hospital equipment and supplies needed by these facilities to assist in the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis.
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blankets to help patients stay warm since many of these facilities suffer from shortages of electricity, coal and wood, making it very difficult to heat them during cold winter months.
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bicycles to help doctors make house calls and doctor's kits filled with stethoscopes, BP cuffs, thermometers and other instruments and supplies needed to diagnose and treat patients.
Visit our Gifts of Hope to see all the projects on which we are currently working.
