Health

Improve quality of life and focus on preventative measures

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For children living in poverty, sickness and disease can be life threatening without access to timely medical support and intervention.

Why health is so important

Girls account for nearly two-thirds of all new HIV infections among adolescents (15-19 years old)

More than three quarters of all malaria deaths worldwide occur in children under five

Close to one-fifth of all children under five remain undernourished

An estimated 19.4 million infants worldwide miss out on basic vaccines

Sources: UNAIDS; WHO; World Bank

Maintaining good physical health is an important part of Compassion’s Child Sponsorship Program. But this represents a significant challenge within the context of poverty and disadvantaged communities.

Through generous supporters, the Health Critical Need covers expenses when unforeseen circumstances in a child’s life arise such as accidents, disease or the need for surgery. It means children in Compassion’s programs can receive the specific care and treatment they need to remain healthy.

This may include:

Costs of surgery
Treatment for illness or injury
Provision of food and nutritional support for malnourished children
Vision, hearing and dental needs
Mobility needs
Specialist care and support

When you give to Health you also invest in initiatives that improve quality of life and focus on preventative measures. This means children will learn to keep themselves healthy throughout their lives.

For every $1 donated

80% goes to program, 20% to administration

80%

Program development and delivery

20%

Administration and fundraising costs

See exactly where your money goes

Health Stories

Feature Story

28 Mar, 2024

The Miracle Child: Joy’s Story

“Vicky called me because Joy was burning with fever,” says Josefina. “I went there right away. She had a 40-degree fever when they checked. The church staff tried to bring her temperature down. I told my husband to come home from work. Then we started looking for a hospital.”.. Read more

02 Jul, 2020

How to Pray for Your Sponsored Child and Their Family

Want to pray for your sponsored child, but not sure where to begin? Here are three tips to get you started!.. Read more

25 Jun, 2020

Four Ways COVID-19 Will Undo Child Development Progress

Millions of children have escaped poverty in the past few decades, but the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to undo much of that progress. So what are the risks that children face—and how can we respond?.. Read more

FAQs

What is Compassion's Highly Vulnerable Children fund?

Compassion's Highly Vulnerable Children fund offers a lifeline to children in Compassion's programs facing unthinkable hardship and living in high-risk situations.

This includes: children who have been orphaned (or youth-headed households), children whose primary caregiver is incapacitated, children who have suffered abuse or exploitation, and children with special needs.

Together with the local church, Compassion identifies children in highly vulnerable situations and provide them with specialised care and assistance to ensure they are stabilised and can continue to participate in Compassion's program.

Examples of help given to these children can include: immediate housing arrangements, trauma counselling, nutritional support and provision of every day needs, legal assistance and renovations to structures and shelters.

The Highly Vulnerable Children fund goes beyond the response of sponsorship to ensure children are kept safe and continue to be given opportunities to grow and develop without facing immediate risks to their safety and well-being.
How much does it cost to support Critical Needs?
The recommended amount to give to one Critical Need is $12 per month. However, you can give any amount of your choosing through either options of one-off or monthly giving. The giving options are flexible, so you have the freedom to support the areas you are most passionate about through Critical Needs.

You can:
- Give to Critical Needs
What is Critical Needs?
The effects of poverty are devastating and affect every area of a child's life. Compassion's Child Sponsorship Program sets the foundation for life-changing opportunities for every registered child. But every child will, at some point, require help beyond sponsorship's reach.

Critical Needs provides the additional support necessary for Compassion assisted children to be released from poverty in Jesus' name. Through Critical Needs, supporters like you who are passionate about particular issues, such as safe water, or caring for mothers and babies, can help children most in need worldwide, or support specific projects in vulnerable communities. There are nine Critical Needs areas that you can choose to support, each area addressing an essential aspect of a child's health and development.

The nine Critical Needs are:
Because we believe that poverty is best addressed through the transformation of the individual child, Critical Needs provides support alongside Compassion's Child Sponsorship Program, not as stand-alone community development activities.
What are the current ways of supporting Mums and Babies?
You can support Mums and Babies in a number of ways, either with a once-only donation or ongoing support.

Here are some of the ways you can choose to give:
- A once-off donation of your choice to Mums and Babies will support young families worldwide and provide emergency care for vulnerable children.
- $12 per month, contributed to Compassion's Critical Needs alongside child sponsorship, supports Mums and Babies globally and provides emergency care for vulnerable children.
- A $20 once-off donation for a Care for a New Mum Gift of Compassion™, which will be used where support is most needed.
- A $40 once-off donation for a baby essentials kit through GIFTSOFCOMPASSION™ gives a mum all the necessary supplies to care for her newborn, such as blankets and soaps.
- A $260 once-off donation for a Start of Life Bundle. This GIFTSOFCOMPASSION™ provides an expectant mum living in poverty with crucial ante and postnatal care.
- $15,000 once-off donation through Gifts of Compassion™ will nurture a Mums and Babies survival project in a specific community and provide life-saving support to vulnerable mothers and their babies.
What is Mums and Babies?
Compassion Mums and Babies gives young children critical support during the vulnerable prenatal months and first year of life. It cares for mums and their little ones in their own homes, the centre of their lives.

Combining Compassion’s expertise and the local church’s loving support, Mums and Babies aims to prevent premature death, secure good health and enable positive development for babies and their mothers in over 25 developing countries.

Your support provides:

Home-based care for mothers and babies, with perinatal specialists visiting families monthly to offer healthcare, education and emotional support.

Advocacy for mums to ensure they are treated fairly by local services and can access the essential support they need to thrive, including medical care and birth attendants.

Community support networks that bring mothers together to combat isolation, learn new ways of earning an income and provide each other with long-term support.

Compassion centres, where mothers can always turn for support, learning opportunities and expert advice on how to monitor their child’s healthy development.

When a child turns one year old, the focus shifts from survival to early childhood development, and the child is eligible to join Compassion's Child Sponsorship Program while continuing to receive personalised home-based care until age three.

You can:
- Give to Mums and Babies
- Learn more about Compassion's Child Sponsorship Program