Slate Article Re: Health Difficulties With Lds Missionaries

[Stargazer]

We've become quite fond of the missionaries here (and when we lived in Texas). There was one kid we knew in Texas who was nervous and shy, and his companion told us before he arrived that he'd had trouble adjusting to mission life. My wife just started asking him about his home, his family, and what he liked to do. We really came to love him, and when he went home, he brought his parents over to meet us. I have a lot of love and empathy for the missionaries, and I pretty much keep my mouth shut about church issues when they're around. 

 

Only once have we had a negative experience, when a new Zone Leader was transferred in and decided to call me to repentance at dinner. I thought it was awkward, but my kids were pretty offended, and my son said he'd rather not have them over anymore. But I explained that some people just don't have good sense about boundaries, and as we got to know that ZL, things got much friendlier.

 

Well, I don't know for sure, but I would think it would be kind of fun to try to call you to repentance! 

[Duncan]

man alive, my Mission president and his wife weren't like a father or mother to me. I vividly remember sitting in an interview at my 18 month mark and he acted like he didn't know me as kept looking at my name tag. I dunno, they were super nice and they had a ton of other missionaries to deal with but I am amazed kinda at the closeness some people had with their Presidents, I never ever had that. Plus! we never got fed at zone conferences!! 3 hours in and out and once they were done the APs shooed everyone back to their areas to get back to work.

[Stargazer]

There are elements of this article that I find entirely non-credible.

 

Two anecdotes from my mission: one of my companions suffered from a chronic digestive disorder. It was not enough to incapacitate him, but it needed to be managed on a daily basis. So far was anyone from thinking this showed any kind of spiritual weakness on his part, that the Mission President stood up in an all-mission meeting to praise him for continuing to work while coping with his illness.

 

Another companion developed appendicitis while I was with him. We were so horrified at the spiritual weakness entailed in going to the doctor that we went straight there that morning.

 

And now, two more: I have two sons who are both serving their missions in widely separated areas. Both of them (as seems to be the way with twins) managed to injure themselves early on: one son, who is serving in a rural area in the Philippines, sprained an ankle while crossing a rice field. The other, in his first P-day in Sydney, Australia, was having a game of touch rugby with the other missionaries in his district, and broke his leg.

 

The son in the Philippines was referred to a nearby doctor by the MP's wife; when the doctor recommended an X-Ray, the Mission Home made the arrangements and put him on a bus to the nearest city. The one in Sydney just went straight to the hospital. The notion that their injuries and/or subsequent medical treatment showed any spiritual deficiency was not canvassed.

 

And would not be, since it is nonsense.

 

As is the claim that missionaries who receive medical releases can't find friends who want to be seen with them. We've had three missionaries from our ward who were sent home early for medical reasons. One was only a few weeks away from the end of his mission. The other two were able to return to the mission field once their medical problems were sorted out: one back to his original mission, the other to another country. But in the meantime, nobody ostracised them; in fact, both of them served as Temple ordinance workers.

 

Like I said: I find key parts of the article entirely non-credible.

 

I am taking that article with grains of salt, and you're going me better by taking teaspoons.

 

I lean towards the article as a biased hit-piece myself, but I believe that there are enough missions and mission presidents in the world that it seems perfectly credible for someone to find enough true stories like these to make an entirely truthful article (i.e. every story is true), yet one that is completely out of proportion to the global facts.  I believe John Williams that his mission had a lot of missionaries who were having health challenges due to the miserable conditions in Bolivia, and so numbers appear dire, when considering only Bolivia.

 

But in my mission, I never heard of anyone at all getting sick, or getting sick, being sent home for being sick.  Germany is just not a place where missionaries have health challenges.  Probably the majority of missions don't have a lot of health issues.  But this article is focused on them, and so they find them.  Is the article statistically valid in its reportage.  I doubt it very highly.  But the stories need not be false.  In fact, you can generously assume every tale is true and yet the entire article is a biased hit piece.  No need to call anyone a liar, except for the author of the piece, who was clearly trying to distort facts in order to embarrass the church.

 

Yep, a few bishops have done bad things, and I bet I could write a big hit piece on all of them.  But compared with all the rest?  It's not as bad as it seems.  Nowhere near, in fact.  Same with this article and its subject.

[Stargazer]

man alive, my Mission president and his wife weren't like a father or mother to me. I vividly remember sitting in an interview at my 18 month mark and he acted like he didn't know me as kept looking at my name tag. I dunno, they were super nice and they had a ton of other missionaries to deal with but I am amazed kinda at the closeness some people had with their Presidents, I never ever had that. Plus! we never got fed at zone conferences!! 3 hours in and out and once they were done the APs shooed everyone back to their areas to get back to work.

 

Gosh, you got a real drone, then.  My MP told me to bring my patriarchal blessing with me for my one-year interview.  He went over it with me (he was a patriarch, so had some insight) and pointed out things to me that seemed significant to him.  It really helped me to understand that blessing a lot better.  And he really cared, you could tell it.

[saemo]

A relative of mine was treated for mental illness while on his mission. He kept this fact from everyone back home, and when he returned he didn't continue treatment. Still keeping to himself that he had treatment while on his mission, he committed suicide three months after returning home. For this reason, I'm strongly in favor of missionaries being encouraged to disclose health problems to their parents, rather than hiding them.

Turns out, his suicide note is where he came out of the closet, and he said he'd rather be dead because he knew he was going to hell for being gay. So dealing with two very major secrets, with serious depression... Thirty years later I still think of the what ifs, particularly, what if his treatment had continued when he returned home.

Edited October 15, 2015 by saemo

[Rain2]

The mission I live in has a mission nurse. I know this because my husband is a physician and has had missionaries referred to him for medical issues. I don't know what the procedure is for them, but we've had phone calls and even drop-ins from missionaries asking for minor medical help (strep throat, a sprained finger, etc.).

I only know of one story (amongst several RM friends and family members) where a missionary had trouble getting access to care. A family member (serving in the US) became very ill and the MPs wife was refusing permission to let him go to the doctor. A woman in the ward he was serving in became concerned enough that she called his mother on his behalf. His mother sent the message back for him to go to the doctor anyway, which he did.

I think this article is heavily slanted (what's up with the out of date Kimball quote about masturbation leading to exhibitionism/homosexuality on page 1 and the grudging admission that the church has becom friendlier to gays on page 3? That's just crappy writing, and extremely crappy journalism) and possibly exaggerated. But it does have me thinking about how I can empower my own children to advocate for their own healthcare if/when they go out. And hopefully the fact that this made national news will inspire someone to examine MP training on this issue more closely.

This may explain some of the poor writing: "Mark Joseph Stern is a writer for Slate. He covers the law and LGBTQ issues."

I went on my mission in 89-90. Visited the doctor several times with no problem.

One of my companions did as well. In fact because of the Houston weather and her condition she ended up being on 10 different meds. They finally felt she should serve on temple square instead. Those last few days before she left she really beat herself up over not having enough faith, despite me, the mission president, his wife and the DLS a firming that was not the case. I kind of felt she had been there for one particular person and when she reached him it was time for the next part of her mission.

I have no doubts that some of the practices in some missions were poor and wrong. I do wonder though if, like with my companion, some were so strong on feeling they were not faithful that their perceptions colored reality for them. Either way they needed help.

I asked the sisters this morning and they said they are supposed to call the mission nurse first. Then they usually see either the stake president's counselor or one of the other doctors in his practice.

Edited October 15, 2015 by Rain2

[Kevin Christensen]

Jana Riess weighs in:

 

http://janariess.religionnews.com/2015/10/14/are-mormon-missionaries-being-denied-health-care-how-slate-dropped-the-ball/

 

FWIW

 

Kevin Christensen

Canonsburg, PA

[Calm]

From the comments:

"However, there seemed to be a feeling of “Suffering for Christ” in many missionaries, a bit of a “superman” complex, and undoubtably peer pressure in getting out, no matter how bad of shape you are in. Based on my experience, you went until someone told you that you shouldn’t (whether it be a companion, someone in a higher hierarchal position than you, or a mission president / wife). That kind of culture really is destructive."

Since I see this in sports and work in many places, I wonder how much influence can be attached to the mission culture as opposed to the stiff upper lip/work or play til you drop/die with your boots on cultures around the world. Think sports figures admired because they play with injuries for the team's sake.

[Calm]

"Cynthia Nielsen Oct 15, 2015 at 1:36 pm

1 of 3: As a recently returned mission president’s wife, I can tell you that there definitely is a comprehensive plan and program to help missionaries receive appropriate care. We had specific instruction and materials at the Mission President’s Training in Provo as well as periodic followup at the yearly mission presidents’ area seminars.

The Area Medical Advisor sent frequent, situation-specific suggestions and guidelines, traveled our whole mission to help vet the best local facilities, and was available 24/7. We talked frequently, almost daily, at times. Missionaries who needed it, had direct access.

The President and I followed up on the church-wide program as stated in the Missionary Medical Guide (given to each missionary) by constantly teaching principles of preventative care such as nutrition, exercise and sleep, the symptoms of depression, culture shock, safe food and water, how to access facilities, contagious diseases, preventing accidents and even the dangers of dog…[attacks?]

We also supplied each apartment with a notebook containing information on recommended medical self-care and the best available local facilities and personnel.

The program includes an army of consulting physicians and mental health professionals from around the world through a toll-free Missionary Medical 24-hour helpline. Our greatest medical challenge was that the in-country medical system ran on bribes and even the best facilities were sadly lacking. We tried our best to compensate, but periodically sent missionaries to Germany or, if necessary, back to their homes. Less-than-ideal circumstances can be part of the price we who serve pay to share the gospel with all the world.

Cynthia Nielsen Oct 15, 2015 at 1:33 pm

Apart from my own experience, the church-wide program I have mentioned, and stated church policy mentioned by Jana above, please note that the World Health Organization’s annual mortality rate for young people worldwide in this age range is approximately 200/100,000 population. LDS missionary deaths do not come close to that.

Of course, we can always do better, but to imply that the Church blocks or denies health care, or somehow wants to have sick and unhappy missionaries, defies the truth of the matter, as well as simple logic!

Edited October 15, 2015 by Calm

[jkwilliams]

Reading through all the comments and Jana's article, it seems clear that much depends on the mission and the leadership. I think most are doing just fine, but I know that is not the case everywhere. It still seems very problematic to have a non-professional be the gatekeeper for medical care, and I can't imagine the rationale behind that policy.

[Duncan]

Reading through all the comments and Jana's article, it seems clear that much depends on the mission and the leadership. I think most are doing just fine, but I know that is not the case everywhere. It still seems very problematic to have a non-professional be the gatekeeper for medical care, and I can't imagine the rationale behind that policy.

 

I know the elders here took an elder in their district to the hospital as he was complaining of severe headaches and sickness, so they just took him to the ER and then called the MP and said what was going on.That was a few weeks ago. I think in the handbook cited earlier it said that in some case getting approvals is ridiculous so just to take them in and then call someone. I kind of did that once in LA but it wasn't so much a health related case as it was a pregnant lady case. We were driving around and saw this pregnant woman and she looked like she was in need of help so we offered her and she just said to take her home. Well, she lived like way out of the mission. We didn't have cell phones, all we had were pagers and getting approval was just not appropriate so we drove her home, out of the mission. I still remember driving back to our mission and neither my comp or I said anything to each other and we went on about our way and I haven't said anything to him about since, we just did it and never talked about it.

Edited October 15, 2015 by Duncan

[Stargazer]

Reading through all the comments and Jana's article, it seems clear that much depends on the mission and the leadership. I think most are doing just fine, but I know that is not the case everywhere. It still seems very problematic to have a non-professional be the gatekeeper for medical care, and I can't imagine the rationale behind that policy.

 

We have non-professional clergy, so perhaps we think a non-professional gatekeeper for medical care is also appropriate.

 

Consider this: you are the medical gatekeeper for your young children.  The mission president and his wife stand to a certain extent in loco parentis for the missionaries under their charge, so it makes some degree of sense.  Actual parents have failed in their charge with respect to access to medical care, and is this an argument for taking all children away from all parents?  No, it isn't.  I realize you're not arguing this, note well.  But the mission president's wife, being most likely a mother who has dealt with her share of sickness in her family, is the most logical first point of contact with respect to health issues.

 

I'm not saying that this is an infallible system.  It is probably the most cost-effective, and fails only in a small number of cases.

[Rain2]

Stargazer - just what I was thinking. I am the "gatekeeper" for my family. My oldest is 21 years old now and experience has given me a lot of insight for whether to take my children in or not. I'm by no means an expert, but I definitely know more than when I started.

A mission president's wife will be dealing with about 200 "children". She will start to notice patterns with that many children. I may not come in contact with more than 3 or 4 missionaries during the week, but the wife may know that 40 missionaries have virus symptoms going around in the country and you just have to wait it out or that 10 other missionaries are in the hospital because of some kind of fever and you better get in too.

Does not mean she is an expert in any way. Just means she may see a bigger picture.

[busybee]

My daughter needed to have a root canal  procedure done, due to a botched filling performed in the run-up to her mission, shortly after arriving in her mission area.

 

She told me in her weekly e-mail that she was due to have it done the next day. I don't know what procedure she went through. I do know, and will be ever grateful, that the dentist was a member of the Ward she was serving in and did it at no cost.

 

A member in the ward sent me an e-mail the next day saying that she was fine and that 'her head hadn't fallen off, or anything like that'.(my daughter's words)

 

I am a registered nurse and have often been consulted by missionaries in our area about health issues, or treated minor injuries after silly accidents. One incident did involve a table-tennis bat and super-glue stitches!! Don't know if the MP ever knew about any of it. If I felt they needed to see a doctor I would tell them that. There didn't seem to be any reluctance to do so when necessary.

[jkwilliams]

Just noticed this:

 

When a missionary is injured or becomes ill, the Church makes extensive efforts to provide the best health care available and covers the costs of medical treatment.

Does the church cover medical costs? Even when the missionary has health insurance? This wasn't the case when I was a missionary, and I have a friend who was left with tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills when she and her husband were injured in a car accident (they were passengers). He had to "unretire" and go back to work to pay off the bills.

Does anyone know when the church began covering medical costs? I'm glad this is the case, but I hadn't heard this. That is one of the reasons I have been puzzled by the assignment of the MP's wife as the "gatekeeper," as it doesn't keep costs down, unless the church is, in fact, covering the bills. If so, I feel a little better about the policy.

If I may share a personal story, my wife served her mission in Bolivia, as I did, and after she went home, she was going to work through the summer and then start back to school in the fall. Her former employer let her start back to work right away. She had been feeling very fatigued since before she left Bolivia, and about 10 days after she came home, she was riding her bike to work and collapsed at the side of the road and could not get up. The doctors in rural Idaho didn't know what to make of it, so they decided she was suffering from "mental exhaustion" and admitted her to a psychiatric hospital, where she was given valium. After a month with no improvement, she said she felt impressed to refuse the medication, and within 2 days was well enough to go home, though they put her on antidepressants.

But now she had $11,000 in hospital bills, so returning to school was out of the question. Her parents were retired and living on Social Security, so she had no family resources. She got a job as a nanny in Connecticut and stayed out there long enough to pay off her medical bills. The first time she went to get her antidepressant medications filled, the doctor in Connecticut said he didn't think she had any signs of depression, so he ran some blood tests (the Idaho doctors had never done so). He called her back and asked, "Have you been in South America recently?" Turns out she had contracted Chagas Disease on her mission.

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs340/en/

She has long-term health problems related to Chagas Disease. It never occurred to her to approach the church about paying her medical bills, and frankly, I doubt they would have.

Edited October 16, 2015 by jkwilliams

[Duncan]

Just noticed this:

 

Does the church cover medical costs? Even when the missionary has health insurance? This wasn't the case when I was a missionary, and I have a friend who was left with tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills when she and her husband were injured in a car accident (they were passengers). He had to "unretire" and go back to work to pay off the bills.

Does anyone know when the church began covering medical costs? I'm glad this is the case, but I hadn't heard this. That is one of the reasons I have been puzzled by the assignment of the MP's wife as the "gatekeeper," as it doesn't keep costs down, unless the church is, in fact, covering the bills. If so, I feel a little better about the policy.

If I may share a personal story, my wife served her mission in Bolivia, as I did, and after she went home, she was going to work through the summer and then start back to school in the fall. Her former employer let her start back to work right away. She had been feeling very fatigued since before she left Bolivia, and about 10 days after she came home, she was riding her bike to work and collapsed at the side of the road and could not get up. The doctors in rural Idaho didn't know what to make of it, so they decided she was suffering from "mental exhaustion" and admitted her to a psychiatric hospital, where she was given valium. After a month with no improvement, she said she felt impressed to refuse the medication, and within 2 days was well enough to go home, though they put her on antidepressants.

But now she had $11,000 in hospital bills, so returning to school was out of the question. Her parents were retired and living on Social Security, so she had no family resources. She got a job as a nanny in Connecticut and stayed out there long enough to pay off her medical bills. The first time she went to get her antidepressant medications filled, the doctor in Connecticut said he didn't think she had any signs of depression, so he ran some blood tests (the Idaho doctors had never done so). He called her back and asked, "Have you been in South America recently?" Turns out she had contracted Chagas Disease on her mission.

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs340/en/

She has long-term health problems related to Chagas Disease. It never occurred to her to approach the church about paying her medical bills, and frankly, I doubt they would have.

 

 

I never had insurance when i was in LA, Canada has national healthcare, as long as you are in Country... I had to have a tooth filled. I got it done by a member and my ward repaid the guy

[rayhale]

There is also the money concern problem. I've heard of missionaries that got into medical trouble with malnutrition by buying cheap, but nutritionally questionable foods like ramen noodles and macaroni & cheese. This is especially the case with missionaries, like me, who are on their mission with the help of other members, and with this in mind, all your missionary money is coming from the “Church”, with this thought process in mind, your spending the Lord’s money. Some prophets gave talks on how they have a penny, or something else to represent the “Widow’s mite”, a Biblical parable that teaches the value of small amounts of money. Some missionaries take this to the extreme by spending as little as they can on food, and other health care measures .

This article didn’t mention it, but there is a strong culture of going out even when you're sick, when it is raining, snowing, or otherwise just dangerous to go out. This happened on one of my areas on my mission, it was raining extremely hard, making it dangerous to ride our bikes in it, so we went back to our apartment. My companion thought we were not being faithful, and even breaking the mission rules for being inside, he called the other missionaries in the area and found out that everyone else was inside too. My Mission President tried to combat the problem of missionaries going out sick, by pointing out that they are spreading potentially deadly diseases to dozens of homes a day, he also said he would rather have us stay in our apartment for one day when it is small, then have us be forced to stay inside for a week, or longer, when it becomes worse.

[jkwilliams]

I never had insurance when i was in LA, Canada has national healthcare, as long as you are in Country... I had to have a tooth filled. I got it done by a member and my ward repaid the guy

I am really glad I read this article and thread. Rereading the page about Chagas Disease showed me that some weird health issues my wife is having may be related. Maybe that Slate guy was prompted to write it.

[Tacenda]

We were sent a letter from the church along with the hospital bill after my son had several stitches on his forehead after an accident playing b-ball. But think the church would have paid had we not had insurance.

[Scott Lloyd]

Stargazer - just what I was thinking. I am the "gatekeeper" for my family. My oldest is 21 years old now and experience has given me a lot of insight for whether to take my children in or not. I'm by no means an expert, but I definitely know more than when I started.

A mission president's wife will be dealing with about 200 "children". She will start to notice patterns with that many children. I may not come in contact with more than 3 or 4 missionaries during the week, but the wife may know that 40 missionaries have virus symptoms going around in the country and you just have to wait it out or that 10 other missionaries are in the hospital because of some kind of fever and you better get in too.

Does not mean she is an expert in any way. Just means she may see a bigger picture.

We take our children to a pediatrician who is brilliant, the best I've ever seen.

 

I recall one occasion when he told us he takes the intuition of a mother very seriously. Experience has shown him the wisdom of that policy. In the incident I have in mind, he was on the verge of diagnosing a fracture as simply a sprain, but because of my wife's hesitancy, he went ahead and ordered the X-ray. It turned out to be a fracture.

[sethpayne]

We take our children to a pediatrician who is brilliant, the best I've ever seen.

 

I recall one occasion when he told us he takes the intuition of a mother very seriously. Experience has shown him the wisdom of that policy. In the incident I have in mind, he was on the verge of diagnosing a fracture as simply a sprain, but because of my wife's hesitancy, he went ahead and ordered the X-ray. It turned out to be a fracture.

 

I've always found the research on this subject to be fascinating.  This articles sums up some of that research nicely.

 

 

We've all heard the term "women's intuition," but is it real, or just a myth? What does the research evidence suggest? Do women have some sort of "psychic" ability to discern others' feelings and what they are thinking?

There is a much more logical, and research-based answer. Research on nonverbal communication skill has clearly shown that women are, as a group, better at reading facial expressions of emotions than are men. As a result, women are more likely to pick up on the subtle emotional messages being sent by others.

Women are also better at expressing emotions through their facial expressions, tone of voice, and body, particularly positive emotions. Men are better at controlling felt emotions and at hiding emotions behind a "poker face." There is also evidence that women are seen as more empathic than men, and that they are more likely to see themselves as empathic. In other words, women tend to be more "open" to others' emotional messages. This may add to the perception that women have some special ability to intuit what others are feeling or thinking.

Where does this ability to read emotions come from? It has been suggested that it is mainly due to social power. Women, who have been historically lower in social power, spend more time observing and scrutinizing those in power (i.e., men, and powerful women), and become more attuned to their nonverbal cues. It has also been suggested that evolutionary elements have been involved, selecting females who have better ability to decode the needs of children and potential mates.

 

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/cutting-edge-leadership/201107/women-s-intuition-myth-or-reality

[rongo]

I've always found the research on this subject to be fascinating.  This articles sums up some of that research nicely.

 

 

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/cutting-edge-leadership/201107/women-s-intuition-myth-or-reality

Have you ever read the book "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell? It goes in-depth into how intuition (things we instantly know without thinking about it) can be much more correct and powerful than careful thought. It also gets into how the flipside is also true. It was fascinating. I also liked his "Outliers."

[Analytics]

I wonder why the Church doesn't have a medically trained professional handling the medical questions for the mission. I don't see how MPs' wives can have enough training to determine even what questions are appropriate to ask in a lot of cases. Young adults often have a belief in their own ability to endure most things physical and can downplay symptoms. Someone medically trained is more likely to be able to dig in deeper in these cases. I think it is great for the MPW to be there as a resource and support, but making medical decisions?

 

Exactly.  A mission president who is among the top 10% in terms of correctly making medical triage decisions for missionaries is going to be very, very, different than one in the bottom 10%.  Everybody has anecdotes. Some are good, some are bad.  Some mission presidents do a good job at medical triage.  Other's do not.  The vast majority of mission presidents are well-meaning.  Not all are.  My wife swears that when she went to her mission president with a medical problem, the mission president responded, "I hate sister missionaries.  They are all too fragile and are all malingerers.  If it were up to me, I'd send them all home."  Professional care was denied.

 

In my opinion, missionaries shouldn't have to go to their religious leaders if they need medical help.  They should go to a doctor or nurse instead. 

 

The biggest problem might be that the missionary has no recourse if he disagrees with the mission president's medical decision to deny professional care. There is nobody to appeal the decision to.  Nobody from whom to get a second opinion.  As a religious obligation, the missionary is expected to follow the mission president's medical advice.  That's fine if the medical advice happens to be good, but the missionary should be able to get a second opinion from a competent professional without a religious leader serving as the gatekeeper.

[jkwilliams]

Exactly.  A mission president who is among the top 10% in terms of correctly making medical triage decisions for missionaries is going to be very, very, different than one in the bottom 10%.  Everybody has anecdotes. Some are good, some are bad.  Some mission presidents do a good job at medical triage.  Other's do not.  The vast majority of mission presidents are well-meaning.  Not all are.  My wife swears that when she went to her mission president with a medical problem, the mission president responded, "I hate sister missionaries.  They are all too fragile and are all malingerers.  If it were up to me, I'd send them all home."  Professional care was denied.

 

In my opinion, missionaries shouldn't have to go to their religious leaders if they need medical help.  They should go to a doctor or nurse instead. 

 

The biggest problem might be that the missionary has no recourse if he disagrees with the mission president's medical decision to deny professional care. There is nobody to appeal the decision to.  Nobody from whom to get a second opinion.  As a religious obligation, the missionary is expected to follow the mission president's medical advice.  That's fine if the medical advice happens to be good, but the missionary should be able to get a second opinion from a competent professional without a religious leader serving as the gatekeeper.

Well said. I loved my mission president and his wife, but I don't think either of them was in a position to make sound medical decisions. Given some of the stories I've heard, there have been some mission presidents who have not acted in the best interests of the missionaries. Either way, as you say, there's no method of appeal for a missionary who is denied care.

[Analytics]

Just noticed this:

 

Does the church cover medical costs? Even when the missionary has health insurance? This wasn't the case when I was a missionary, and I have a friend who was left with tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills when she and her husband were injured in a car accident (they were passengers). He had to "unretire" and go back to work to pay off the bills.

Does anyone know when the church began covering medical costs? I'm glad this is the case, but I hadn't heard this. That is one of the reasons I have been puzzled by the assignment of the MP's wife as the "gatekeeper," as it doesn't keep costs down, unless the church is, in fact, covering the bills. If so, I feel a little better about the policy.

If I may share a personal story, my wife served her mission in Bolivia, as I did, and after she went home, she was going to work through the summer and then start back to school in the fall. Her former employer let her start back to work right away. She had been feeling very fatigued since before she left Bolivia, and about 10 days after she came home, she was riding her bike to work and collapsed at the side of the road and could not get up. The doctors in rural Idaho didn't know what to make of it, so they decided she was suffering from "mental exhaustion" and admitted her to a psychiatric hospital, where she was given valium. After a month with no improvement, she said she felt impressed to refuse the medication, and within 2 days was well enough to go home, though they put her on antidepressants.

But now she had $11,000 in hospital bills, so returning to school was out of the question. Her parents were retired and living on Social Security, so she had no family resources. She got a job as a nanny in Connecticut and stayed out there long enough to pay off her medical bills. The first time she went to get her antidepressant medications filled, the doctor in Connecticut said he didn't think she had any signs of depression, so he ran some blood tests (the Idaho doctors had never done so). He called her back and asked, "Have you been in South America recently?" Turns out she had contracted Chagas Disease on her mission.

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs340/en/

She has long-term health problems related to Chagas Disease. It never occurred to her to approach the church about paying her medical bills, and frankly, I doubt they would have.

 

As another anecdote, a missionary from a very poor family in Argentina had some moderate psychiatric issues throughout his mission, was totally ineffective as a missionary, and was a royal pain to everybody he came in contact with.  About half way through his mission he was diagnosed with a brain tumor.  The Church paid for his brain surgery in one of the best hospitals in Argentina, and then sent him home.  A leader in the mission office later told me, "his mission was to get his life saved."

 

I would guess that the church will pay for care during your mission, and will pay for it after you come home if you came home early because of the medical condition.  If you make it to the end of your mission like your wife did, there just isn't a number to call or a form to fill out to have the church help you get back to pre-mission health.  The Church might have a legal responsibility to pay for such things under worker's compensation law, but the returned missionary would probably have to be willing to sue the Church in order to get them to address such a responsibility.

Edited October 16, 2015 by Analytics