3.3.5 Religious Entities
The term ‗religious entities‘ (RE) addresses a broad range of tangible Religious Health assets, such as clinics, dispensaries hospices, hospital beds and care groups like the Home Based Care support groups. Religious entities include religious facilities, organizations, and medical practitioners, from both bio-medical and traditional. According to ARHAP glossary88 the all encompassing understanding of religious entities provides a platform to address both the conventional religious entities such as faith-based organizations, as well as those that are less recognized entities such as traditional healers. ARHAP feels that FBO‘s is not broad enough to include national church organizations, worshiping congregations, small projects, key individuals, etc. So the use of the term RE to refer to this wide range of assets found among RE helps to address any activity that goes under the name ‗religion‘.
1. Religion is ubiquitous in Zambia and Lesotho, yet often hidden from western view. Given this, an engagement with religiously informed healthworlds93 is vital for the shaping of public health policy in Southern Africa.
2. Religion, health and well being are locally and contextually driven. For those seeking to engage RHAs, religion cannot be viewed as a single, simple cultural ―variable‖- no ―one size fits all.‖
3. Religious involvement in health and HIV and AIDS is increasing- particularly since 2000-and religious entities have expressed a strong local commitment and desire to be more effective in the area of HIV and AIDS. Interfaith engagement and dialogue require further exploration.
4. Religious entities are perceived as contributing to health, well being and the struggle against HIV and AIDS through tangible and intangible means. It is this combination that distinguishes and gives them strength. Some of the leading tangible factors comprise compassionate care, material support and health provision; leading intangibles are spiritual encouragement, knowledge giving and moral formation.
5. Certain religious entities are acknowledged as ―Exemplars‖ in the community and these demonstrate exceptional programmatic, operational and associative characteristics.
6. An asset-Based Approach to research and implementation of religion and health initiatives and HIV and AIDS scale up offers the potential for more rapid, sustainable and effective capacity-building and action.
Another major research conducted by ARHAP was the recent study on Faith Based Health services in Sub Saharan Africa (SSA). In 2007 the Gates Foundation commissioned ARHAP to conduct research in SSA on health services provided by religious communities. The focus was on describing the services provided, their ‗comparative advantage,‘ the way they network and collaborate with each other and public health agencies. Three cases studies were undertaken in Zambia, Uganda and Mali. The detailed report on the findings and specific recommendations on the research study are posted on the ARHAP web page.94 It is worth mentioning that this research also gave opportunity for ARHAP to study RHAs in a predominantly Muslim country
93 Paul Germond, Bophelo: Towards a working definition- finding alternatives to the words” religion” and “health”
Healthworld- is a term used in ARHAP that encompasses all elements that create and sustain a health world.
2005.p2
94 ARHAP, <http://www.arhap.uct.ac.za/publications.php>
(Mali). The aim of the study was to explore the role of Religious Entities in contributing to health in SSA with a view of identifying areas for future investment. The following is a summary of the findings.
1. Religious entities (REs) make a significant and unique contribution to health services 2. Faith-based health services in SSA show great variety in type and extent
3. National Faith Based Health Networks (NFBHNs) play a crucial role in enabling facility-based services, yet their rightful place within national health systems is not always acknowledged.
4. There have been significant shifts in ownership/funding/responsibility regarding faith-based health facilities over recent years from the historic mission model to local and agency funding, leaving huge discrepancies.
5. Faith-based health services work under severe constraints, especially regarding their workforce 6. REs provide a wide range of non-facility-based services in response to immediate local needs, playing a very important role under serious constraints.
7. Mixing of multiple healing modalities (African traditional, bio-medical, faith healing, alternative therapies) is a common reality across SSA with mostly very little mutual acknowledgement and collaboration.
8. While the important potential of religious leaders for health promotion has been channeled into some creative initiatives, it is generally underutilized.
ARHAP has also conducted research in South Africa in the Eastern Cape, at the Masangane HIV and AIDS program in 2005.95 The title of the report is ―Let us embrace” The role and significance of an Integrated Faith-Based Initiative for HIV and AIDS.‟ The Vesper Society in USA commissioned the study. Masangane is a faith based organization involved in the service of Anti Retroviral Treatment (ART) in a rural community. The focus of the study was to evaluate and assess the impact of this faith based organization and to assess the ―value added‖ in its services due to it being faith based.96 The results of the research are best summarized in the quote from the report which notes that the Masangane services ― represents something that has become increasingly part of public health thinking, namely, the need for a far more holistic response to illness and disease. In the case of Masangane this includes its comprehensive range
95 Masngane-means – ‗let us embrace‘ it is this name which characterizes the atmosphere at Masangane- where the normal routine of taking the ARVs drug is accompanied with daily Bible reading of giving hope and encouragement derived from support groups- this approach has helped addressed issues of stigma. ARHAP report The Journal of Theology for Southern Africa 2, no. 126 (2006) p117
96 ARHAP report, Documentation The Journal of Theology for Southern Africa 2, no. 126 (2006), p.116
of response to prevention, care, and support beyond its bio-medical activity.‖97 The example of Masangane, ART services in the context of the continuum of care shows what kind of value faith based activities add to health and well being.
In addition to the field work, ARHAP has conducted a number of colloquiums and seminars where academic and research papers have been presented on religion, health and religious health assets.98
97ARHAP report, Documentation The Journal of Theology for Southern Africa 2, no. 126 (2006), p.118
98 ARHAP report papers and proceedings- Assets and Agency, Colloquium 2003. International Colloquium, 2007, collection of concept papers. <http://www.arhap.uct.ac.za/publications.php>