This summer, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints expanded its humanitarian footprint across Asia with donations to hospitals and care centers in Cambodia, South Korea, Thailand and Mongolia, targeting the region’s most vulnerable patients: mothers, infants and children.
Read about these humanitarian efforts by Church below.
A new pediatric surgical building in Cambodia
At the National Pediatric Hospital in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 253,000 patients shuffle in and out each day — even though there are only four operating rooms.
Often, children must wait long into the night before receiving life-saving procedures.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints donated “a symbol of true, pure, humane love and support” in June for Cambodia children and families, said Chheang Ra, minister of health in Cambodia.
The donation includes a new pediatric surgical building — the four-story, 35,000 square-foot building will double the capacity for pediatric surgery — as well as state-of-the-art surgical equipment, the Church’s Cambodia Newsroom reported.
Since Latter-day Saints began humanitarian work in Cambodia in 1994, more than 670 humanitarian projects have been completed, with an additional 25 underway. The surgical building is the largest donation to date.
The new hospital, projected to open in August of next year, will feature seven operating rooms, a seven-bed recovery room, a special intensive care department with 10 beds and a general patient ward with 80 beds.
Elder Benjamin M.Z. Tai, a General Authority Seventy and then the president of the Church’s Asia Area, spoke on behalf of the Church and its members and donors throughout the world at the June 15 groundbreaking ceremony.
“In our faith, we believe that children are an heritage from the Lord; our offspring are a reward from him,” said Elder Tai, referencing Psalm 127:3. “Children truly are the treasures of any society, for they embody our greatest hopes and aspirations for a better and brighter future.”
A children’s emotional support program in South Korea
The Gyeonggi Northern Temporary Child Protection Center in South Korea is a specialized institution that serves children who have experienced parental abuse or violence.
The Church donated funds to support the center in July, making way for an additional emotional support program. This is the second time the Church has donated, the Church’s East Asia Newsroom reported.
Signing a memorandum and solidifying the purpose of the donation were Seoul Korea East Stake President Il-Gwang Choi; and welfare and self-reliance manager Hyun Seong Cho. That document was presented to Sang-Yeob Lee, center director.
“We are grateful for the opportunity to support an important organization that cares for children who have suffered abuse at the hands of their guardians under very difficult circumstances,” said President Choi. “We will continue to explore ways that members of the Church in the local community can work together to provide meaningful support for these children and for the Gyeonggi Northern Temporary Child Protection Center.”
The Church’s donation will aid in creating a safe living environment while also providing a variety of programs designed to promote physical recovery, emotional stability and psychological healing for children.
A mental and infant hospital care in Thailand
Thanks to an equipment donation from the Church, 2,500 pregnant mothers will receive better care annually at the Bang Phli Hospital just south of Bangkok, Thailand.
The Church’s donated equipment — a uterine contraction monitor, a fetal health assessment system and a wireless monitoring system — enhances the doctors’ ability to monitor pregnancy health and safely deliver babies, reported the Church’s Thailand Newsroom.
The handover ceremony on May 29 at the hospital was attended by dozens of staff, managerial representatives and Church representatives.
The development plan now includes replacing existing equipment, adding a non-stress test machine and strengthening neonatal care with incubators, breast pumps and oxygen mixers. The upgraded essential equipment will help reduce preventable complications, increase survival rates and provide families with confidence in the safety and quality of care.
A center for maternal and child health in Mongolia
“We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all of you,” said B. Batsaikhan, head physician of the National Institute of Health in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
Speaking to members of the Church of Jesus Christ, Batsaikhan received a donation on behalf of the National Center for Maternal and Child Health on June 18, the Church’s Mongolia Newsroom reported.
“We are deeply grateful for the donation of this device, which is essential for the care and services of women’s cancer,” he continued.
The Church donated equipment and tools to the hospital, including a high-frequency burner generator, nurse carts, patient chairs and more, which will benefit thousands of mothers and children in the region.
“In the future, we aim to introduce new treatment technologies that are patient-centered, safe and minimally invasive,” said Batsaikhan. “These include advanced technologies such as microwave thermal therapy to inhibit tumor growth and endovascular surgery to block the vessels that feed the tumor.”
