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Dec. 23, 2019
FORT MILL, S.C., Dec. 23, 2019 /
Christian Newswire/ -- MedSend, a global healthcare missions organization, today announced a transformational pledge of $2.4 million, to be distributed over the next three years. The investment will help ensure that affordable and compassionate healthcare will be available in some of the world's most underserved areas.
This is in response to the Stead Family Foundation ("The Foundation")'s announcement of its support of the delivery of global healthcare with a philanthropic gift to MedSend.
According to Jerre Stead, head of The Foundation, "Mary Joy and I and our family--our sons, Jay and Joel, and our grandchildren--believe that philanthropy is the opportunity to help great people do great things."
"We believe that today MedSend and its leadership are doing great things and have an even greater vision for the delivery of compassionate healthcare in highly underserved areas throughout the world," he said.
The $2.4 million commitment is designed to support MedSend's work in two areas. First, it will help send and sustain healthcare professionals from the United States (U.S.) to live in underserved areas throughout the world, including underserved areas in the U.S. A MedSend grant recipient typically commits to live and serve in these underserved areas for terms of up to four years. In return, MedSend will relieve them of their healthcare-related educational debt by making the monthly payments on that debt during their service. In any given year, MedSend is making payments for approximately 200 healthcare professionals in over 80 countries. Many individuals have committed 20 years or more to serve the people in these regions and over 175 have had their entire debt paid in full. MedSend works with 50 missions' organizations in order to select, screen, and prepare these individuals for long term service.
The Foundation is also committed to building up leaders who will make a positive impact in their home country and throughout the world. To that end, a part of their investment in MedSend will support the MedSend National Scholars program. The program is designed to offer scholarships for advanced medical training to national physicians. Currently, the "residency" level training includes General Surgical, Orthopedics, Ob/Gyn, Pediatrics, and Family Practice. Several more specialty areas are in development. This training occurs in the country or continent where the Scholar will live and work. At this time, 15 hospitals, run by 5 international partners in Africa and Asia, meet MedSend's requirements for the National Scholars program. That number is expected to significantly increase in the coming years.
MedSend, with the help of The Foundation, is exploring additional ways to create a model where ideas and strategies are developed and implemented in order to maximize the impact of both the organizations and individual healthcare professionals leaving the U.S. to serve, and including those being trained in their own region of the world.
According to Mary Joy Stead, "MedSend meets many of the objectives of The Foundation including strategic partnerships designed to increase effectiveness; leadership development; and compassionate care for the most vulnerable. We are pleased to support MedSend's efforts to increase the number of healthcare professionals bringing compassionate care throughout the world."
In reflecting on the generosity of the Steads, Rick Allen, President and CEO of MedSend remarked: "Jerre, Mary Joy and their family are committed to partnering with organizations and people to do great things. We are blessed to have them as partners as we seek to build the number of healthcare professionals available throughout the world and those trained in their own country and committed to serve in areas of high need."
About MedSend
MedSend partners with 50 mission sending agencies to enable healthcare professionals to serve in long-term global healthcare missions by providing funding that subsidizes their monthly educational loan payments while they serve. In addition, MedSend provides grants to support the training of national healthcare professionals in their country of origin. MedSend's mission is to enable healthcare providers to work where they have been called, unencumbered by educational debt, and to monitor their progress in their roles as healthcare providers.
SOURCE MedSend
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