Conference aims to bring the spiritual back into healthcare
TORONTO, ON - Physical, psychological and spiritual healing practices will come together this fall for the first ever National Conference for Christian Healthcare Workers.
The event takes place October 28 and 29 at Yorkminster Park Baptist Church in Toronto. It's organized by EMAS Canada, a Christian charity which helps send medical, surgical and dental teams overseas to help with health initiatives.
"The purpose of the conference is to challenge Christian health care workers from all disciplines to take seriously Christ's words from the Great Commission - to take His healing to the nations," says Hendrik Visser, president and chair of the board for EMAS Canada.
Seminar and workshops will look at healthcare initiatives and practices locally, nationally and internationally. Keynote speakers include author and activist Tony Campolo, Nicholas Comninellis founder of INMED and Toni Dolfo-Smith of Living Waters Canada.
One of the important aspects of the event, Visser explains, is the focus on "whole person" care. While many healthcare workers in Canada today now realize the importance of viewing their patients from a biological, psychological and social perspective, he says it's important to consider their spiritual needs as well.
"There aren't a lot of healthcare workers who are including the spiritual side in their practices," he says. "But we have a rich spiritual heritage in health care. This has been lost in many ways as we've become secularized as an industry, and we want to see that brought back.
"This is the first conference of its kind that integrates all of those disciplines. In some ways, we're exploring new territory. But in other ways it's very old territory too, because Christ's first disciples did it."
Visser hopes the conference will inspire healthcare workers from across Canada to "bring Christ" into every area of the healthcare industry - surgery, psychiatry, research, street nursing and more.
Michael Wills, executive director of EMAS Canada, says they also hope to help Canadian healthcare workers catch a global vision.
"One of our aims is to encourage people to use their God-given healing gifts overseas," Wills says. "As Gabor Mate has said, why does someone go into medicine, but to help the suffering of humanity? And you can't help the suffering in humanity unless you go to where the suffering is.
"So our hope is to encourage people - all health care professionals - to serve overseas and also to minister to the whole person, whether they are working overseas, or right here in Canada."
Visser adds, "We're challenging the church to be a healing community. While those of us in the medical profession may be one arm of that healing work, we need to rest of the Body of Christ. We need clergy. We need Christian counsellors. We need intercessory prayers. We need visitors for the elderly and the dying.
"The big picture theme is Christ's rule over all. How can we go out there and be the hands and feet of Jesus?"
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