Doctors For Life International is a non-governmental and registered Non-Profit making Organisation (NPO) established in 1991. We now have a growing number over 1300 members.
The members are medical doctors, specialists, dentists, veterinary surgeons, and
professors of medicine from various medical faculties across South Africa and
abroad, in private practice and in government institutions.
We bring together medical professionals to form a united front to uphold the following three principles:
• The sanctity of life from conception till death;
• Sound science in the medical profession;
• A Basic Christian ethic in the medical profession.
Membership Offers Our Members
• A credible mouth-piece to air their views
• A platform to live out their convictions in society
• Scientific arguments on important issues (e.g. abortion, cloning, euthanasia, pornography, prostitution etc.)
• Legal representation for their rights as a health professional
• The opportunity to adopt a pet topic and represent DFL in the media and on other occasions
• CPD lectures & points on medical ethics
• Involvement in action areas
• Quarterly newsletters
AWARENESS
Lectures and presentations by invitation.
The production of high quality poster sets and audio - visual material.
PREVENTION
Life Skills Curriculum Development for schools. This programme aims to build character, based on family values abstinence is promoted as the solution to HIV/AIDS
Workplace AIDS Programme
This programme is aimed at preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS through industrial employees by promoting family values and mutual faithfulness within marriage.
Clients include Anglo - American mines, ESKOM, SRCC and PANNAR
CARE
AIDS - Home & Community Based Terminal Care:
Community volunteers are trained to assist families to effectively care for their dying relatives. This offers an opportunity to minister to people with AIDS either through financial support or by establishing a HBC project in your area where DFL can work hand in hand with your local church. DFL has identified the need to develop a Home Based Care program for terminally ill patients. The reason being that hospitals and clinics in some areas of the country are not able to cope with the increasing inpatient loads. Some big referral hospitals are reluctant to accept transfers of AIDS patients. AIDS patients are reported to occupy up to 90% of beds in some hospitals. DFL has started the training of AIDS Home Based Caregivers. More than 500 candidates have completed the 5-day basic course, which has been presented in 5 provinces. DFL has also conducted Home Based Care courses in some provincial hospitals. About a thousand patients have already been treated through the program and the number is increasing all the time. We are in the process of training enough trainers to develop a network of available caregivers in SA and we plan to include Mozambique, Lesotho and Swaziland. The care kit required for one Home Caregiver costs about R 200 (contact us for your currency). Funds are needed to finance this program. DFL has been requested to provide training to provincial and national health departments in South Africa and has also received requests from the World Health Organization’s AIDS department for Sub- Saharan Africa.
Project - LIFE CHILD:
day care centres nurture AIDS orphans within the context of their own culture and communities
• Members become involved, by serving needy communities in Sub-Saharan Africa, providing medical care and mobile clinics
• These outreaches are opportunities to share the gospel of Christ
Telephone Counselling
HOPE LINE 082 - 407 3929
A 24-hour helpline provides counselling and advice on drugs, HIV/AIDS, abortion, child abuse or other medical needs the number is advertised on national TV and in various publications
Projects Against Substance Abuse
AWARENESS & PREVENTION
• Presentations are done by medical experts and rehabilitated drug addicts to warn about the dangers of drug abuse.
• Publications and articles
• Adverts on national TV, radio and other media
• Industrial Drug Programme
REHABILITATION
Drug addicts are helped through counselling in association with respected care centres.
• Supplying affordable, effective medicines to developing countries
• Actively combating malaria
• Distributing artemisia annua products as MALARLIFE
Legal Services
• DFL offers legal services to health professionals pressurised into being involved in the abortion procedure or active euthanasia
• DFL renders expert evidence on medical and ethical issues in court
Audio - Visual Production
• ORISON PICTURES, a full scale design house uses cutting edge digital technology to produce videos, promoting DFL’s values
• Adverts are broadcasted on national TV and Radio:
Doctors For Life is producing 30-second advertisements on national TV. The aim is to promote family values as well as the prevention of drug abuse. A 24-hr help line is available for telephone counseling on STD’s/AIDS and drug abuse. Another innovative method against HIV/AIDS takes the form of color posters designed by DFL for hospital and public places. Versions of these posters appear on public busses in Kwazulu Natal.
• The Desktop Publishing(DTP) Unit is responsible for DFL’s corporate look
• Doctors For Life is managed by the Doctors For Life Executive Board and a full-time CEO, Dr Albertus van Eeden. He is assisted by about 15 full-time staff and a large group of volunteers from South Africa and other countries.
Our Finances
• Doctors For Life is dependent on donations from its members and other donours, including churches and private individuals
• The finances is managed by a full-time bookkeeper and audited by an authorised financial services provider, Roberts and Chaplin in Umhlali, South Africa.
