Building Capacity

There are many organizations that are trying to do good work. That's great and we hope that they have great success. The challenge comes with doing great work and then returning home in a few weeks. Now what happens to the people being served? That is why MMI is focused on building capacity!

There is nothing wrong with going and helping the less fortunate, but if you can do it within a strategy that is focused on building capacity the impact can be huge. We have many teams that travel for one week and two week Projects, but they are now a part of an overall strategy that is designed to increase the medical infrastructure of the community being served. This strategy can not be based on a short-term team, but on the use of multiple teams and in-country staff working with our Health Centers to execute our Programs.

There is so much more to building capacity than just going and helping people. It is programs designed to train others, prevent what causes the disease to being with, and most important build a team to support the medical personnel in the community. We can not just train a doctor to become a surgeon without training the support staff to come alongside. We must have strong Administrators, Nurses, Technicians, etc. to work together to increase the footprint made by the team.

The other key component is the fiber that binds the total ministry together, Integrated Health. We must help to focus on the physical and spiritual well-being of those we serve. Many societies are limited in education and our Integrated Health Teams work to bring this type of information to every person we serve. We must help those to help themselves and you will find an Integrated Health component within every initiative.

Another area that is very important is analysis and assessment of all activities taking place. Is the effort focused on the right needs, are there follow-up procedures in place to take care of those we serve? What is the result of the initiative? A very focused strategy that provides this level of detail, accountability, and transparency is a requirement for the team at MMI. It should be for your ministry too!