With the flood waters in Pakistan now decreasing and people beginning to move back into or near to their villages, WorldVenture aid efforts are also shifting gears. While the hospital (SCH) continues to treat hundreds of local patients for the chronically poor health conditions for which they typically have no money to see a doctor, the need for medical clinics in the Internally Displaced People (IDP) camps is also lessening. At this point, all of the IDP camps and tent cities are expected to be vacated by November, and WorldVenture is no longer recruiting for additional medical team members. Nonetheless, the hospital can always use additional nurses and midwives, including those who can only come short term.

While the worst may be over, the flood is going to continue to disrupt lives for many months to come. WorldVenture workers are planning to keep helping the Pakistani people rebuild their homes and lives—and to ensure that our efforts have long-term impact on the country. With most of the croplands destroyed and the earliest harvest not expected until March or April, food is expected to remain a major need throughout the Sindh province. As one of our workers says, “New relationships need time. I have seen too many organizations in situations like this blow through their funds quickly and then leave. As a result, their work has minimal lasting impact.” So, givers to our Pakistan Flood Relief efforts are not only providing emergency aid, but helping ensure that WorldVenture workers have an enduring presence and affect in Pakistan.

The Hospital (SCH)
The hospital’s two nutrition wards are presently operating over full capacity, with 24 beds and 30 patients—and several other people are on a waiting list for admittance. The staff reports having excellent success with patients that do not leave against medical advice (as many are prone to do).

For the past two weeks, two short-term doctors have been helping with the medical camps and providing much-needed relief to the regular medical personnel. With their assistance, in one week alone approximately 600 patients were seen in the hospital, IDP camps and villages. The incidence of malaria is reportedly on the increase, but not significantly more than what is common for this time of the year.

With food and water continuing to top the list of needs in Sindh, just under 300 bags of food were also distributed last week in the IDP camps and surrounding villages, with three water pumps completed and several more planned or partially completed. Our workers had to encourage one group of IDPs to return to their village upon learning that the only reason that they remained was to take advantage of food deliveries. These farmers own their own land, and it was estimated that their fields would be workable within 10 days. Our workers are considering helping them with seed for their wheat crop, and the families had enough confidence in their word to move back on Friday.

As things return to normal, the hospital staff is developing a budget and establishing a manageable medical clinic circuit for the surrounding villages over the next several months.

PBCI
The Pakistan Bible Correspondence Institute guys have shifted their focus to the Dadu/Mehar area, where the needs remain huge. At a recent food distribution they were overwhelmed with desperate requests—women literally crying, and men begging/pleading for some kind of help—even a few kilos of flour to be able to make themselves a bit of food. They assisted around 240 families in their last visit and plan to keep working in this vicinity.

Thatta
Water pumps continue to be installed in the Thatta district, with six completed in a new area (Tando Hafiz Shah) toward a total of twelve; three are being rehabilitated in another village.

Hyderabad
Despite two permanent medical camps at the Gulshan Shehbaz Camp (one civilian, one army) plus a Doctors Without Borders diarrhea facility, visiting WorldVenture workers found a lot of sickness there: ear and eye infections, some malaria, many colds, scabies and other things. Three highly-malnourished children were taken to a pediatrician in the city for treatment and advice. There was also an incidence of TB (15-year-old girl) and several very bad dental cases that will require a dentist. About 80 patients were treated over two days.

Food and sandal distributions to these families continue, as well, and the hope is to provide shawls to all the ladies soon. The oldest lady in the camp gave our workers a heart-felt gift from as they were leaving: two chickens—an extremely generous gift for these poor people. Most of this group’s homeland is still lying under 3-4 feet of water, with water continuing to flow down from surrounding higher areas and pooling in their region. It is totally unclear as to when they’ll be able to return to their village.

Partner Aid International—a brief introduction
PAI is another like-minded organization that is a legally registered NGO here in Pakistan. Up to now, most of their work has been in Balochistan and Peshawar. They have offices in Islamabad and Quetta, and are getting involved in relief work in the Sindh for six months to a year and starting a shelter project in the Sajjaval area.

Thank you for your prayers for WorldVenture’s flood relief efforts! For who like statistics, here are a few:
• 17 out of 21 districts in the Sindh province of Pakistan have been affected by the floodwaters.
• The Shikarpur district (not city) ranks 5th in the number of people affected with 790,000.
Villages affected: 1,359
Houses damaged: 119,697
Area affected: 401,831 acres (this includes 110,189 acres of crop land)
Relief Camps established by the government: 322
Number of people in government relief camps: 80,831 (there are many people in non-
government relief camps.)
Number of deaths: 27

(Note: Statistics obtained from the Government of Sindh Provincial Disaster Management Authority.)