Health

Improve quality of life and focus on preventative measures

BACK TO DONATE

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

Where does Compassion Mums and Babies operate?
Compassion Mums and Babies works in over 25 developing countries to prevent premature death, secure good health and enable positive development in the youngest, most vulnerable children.

Mums and Babies always operates through a survival project at the Compassion centre in local communities. It is the first phase of our holistic child development model. From age one, children will transition from Mums and Babies into the Child Sponsorship Program.

You can
- Give to Mums and Babies
- Learn more about the Child Sponsorship Program
Why does the cost to support an entire Mums and Babies survival project vary between countries?
The care that families receive from Mums and Babies is specific to them, and differs between countries based on children’s needs and the availability and accessibility of government or other support services. This means the cost to support an entire Mums and Babies survival project also varies between countries ($15,000 - $25,000 per year), and has been determined by the price of local services, families' specific needs and currency conversions.

For example, in Thailand, free universal healthcare is available to families—but not always accessible, especially in remote areas. Instead of replacing existing services, your support empowers Compassion staff to assess and meet each family’s individual and most urgent needs. For children in Thailand, this includes providing educational and health support to increase rates of breastfeeding, helping to prevent undernutrition and stunting for newborns.

You can support Mums and Babies for $12 per month or another amount of your choosing. You can also give through a one-off financial contribution. These contributions are pooled to support mothers and babies all around the world.

If you are interested in supporting an entire Mums and Babies survival project, please contact us.

You can:
- Give to Mums and Babies
- Contact us for more information
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.