Healing Among the Incas: Drs. Klaus Dieter and Tina John
Healing Among the Incas:
Drs. Klaus-Dieter and Tina John
Klaus-Dieter grew up in Wiesbaden, Germany, the fourth child in a Baptist family. His father and mother were committed Christians. Klaus' father was a baker and, from his earliest childhood, Klaus and his siblings learned to work very hard. When he was a young teenager, Klaus read several books by "jungle doctor" Paul White, an Australian doctor who had served as a missionary in Tanganyika, Africa. Klaus longed to be like him.
By the time he was seventeen and president of his high school, Klaus sensed God was calling him to do something special. He had a burning passion to earn the best possible medical degree and spend the rest of his life serving the poorest of the poor in another land. That year, he met Martina, who was a year younger and led a girls' group in the same school. She had the exact same calling.
Klaus and Tina led a youth group together at their church, and both studied at Mainz University. A deep love grew between them and, after their marriage and graduation with medical degrees, and further training in England, Johannesburg, and Berlin, Klaus came to America to study at Harvard University. From 1991-1993, he was also a surgical resident at Yale, while Tina, a recipient of a university scholarship of the German People, crowned her achievements with both German and American Pediatric board certifications.
In 1991, on a backpacking hiking trip through Peru, they both witnessed the deep medical needs among the forgotten Quechua people, descendants of the ancient Incas. Living in the dense jungles of the Andes, these people had no medical help for hundreds of miles, and 80% of the Indians lived in abject poverty. Medically, their social hardship was reflected in a high rate of infant mortality, malnutrition, and reduced life expectancy. There were just four doctors per 10,000 inhabitants. In addition, more than 30% of the Quechua in Apurímac were illiterate. Studies consistently placed Peru at the bottom of the international comparison of educational standards, and education among Indian children was particularly inadequate, robbing them of their only chance of a better future. As devout followers of Jesus Christ, Klaus and Tina decided to do something about it.
They volunteered to serve as missionary doctors from 1998-2003 at the Vozandes del Oriente Hospital in Ecuador. As a first step to easing the misery of the Indians of Peru, they and a few like-minded friends then founded the Diospi Suyana charity organization in August of 2002. The name comes from the Quechua language, meaning “We trust in God.”
The Diospi Suyana vision led to the founding of a modern hospital and dental and eye clinics in 2007. Five years later, the Children's House for the Diospi Suyana Kids Clubs was opened and, on 14 March 2014 the Diospi Suyana school was dedicated, which now has more than 500 students enrolled. Since 19 July 2016 the Diospi Suyana Radio has been on air too, broadcasting the good news of Christ to southern Peru. The compound for this huge state-of-the-art medical facility is located in the town of Curahuasi, Peru, situated at 2,650 miles above sea level in the South Peruvian Andes, where it enjoys an excellent strategic location just off the highway connecting the cities of Cusco, Abancay, and Lima.
More than 750,000 people, primarily Quechua Indians, live within a three-hour drive radius of this center. The hospital is equipped with 100 beds, six operating theaters, an intensive care unit, labs and x-ray facilities, and employs about 180 locals. In its first decade, the hospital treated 125,000 patients. The hospital system operates totally by gifts from the Lord. Its donations from individuals, corporations, and churches fund 80% of all costs, while the Quechuas pay 20%.
Dr. John travels all over the world, telling the story of the hospital and God's provision, never asking for funds. God provides through people who see His hand at work and long to join Him. Klaus and Tina want to serve among their people until their deaths. They pray each day that others will come to work alongside, as PeaceWeavers indeed, bringing hope and healing to God's precious people of Peru.
-Karen O'Dell Bullock
By the time he was seventeen and president of his high school, Klaus sensed God was calling him to do something special. He had a burning passion to earn the best possible medical degree and spend the rest of his life serving the poorest of the poor in another land. That year, he met Martina, who was a year younger and led a girls' group in the same school. She had the exact same calling.
Klaus and Tina led a youth group together at their church, and both studied at Mainz University. A deep love grew between them and, after their marriage and graduation with medical degrees, and further training in England, Johannesburg, and Berlin, Klaus came to America to study at Harvard University. From 1991-1993, he was also a surgical resident at Yale, while Tina, a recipient of a university scholarship of the German People, crowned her achievements with both German and American Pediatric board certifications.
In 1991, on a backpacking hiking trip through Peru, they both witnessed the deep medical needs among the forgotten Quechua people, descendants of the ancient Incas. Living in the dense jungles of the Andes, these people had no medical help for hundreds of miles, and 80% of the Indians lived in abject poverty. Medically, their social hardship was reflected in a high rate of infant mortality, malnutrition, and reduced life expectancy. There were just four doctors per 10,000 inhabitants. In addition, more than 30% of the Quechua in Apurímac were illiterate. Studies consistently placed Peru at the bottom of the international comparison of educational standards, and education among Indian children was particularly inadequate, robbing them of their only chance of a better future. As devout followers of Jesus Christ, Klaus and Tina decided to do something about it.
They volunteered to serve as missionary doctors from 1998-2003 at the Vozandes del Oriente Hospital in Ecuador. As a first step to easing the misery of the Indians of Peru, they and a few like-minded friends then founded the Diospi Suyana charity organization in August of 2002. The name comes from the Quechua language, meaning “We trust in God.”
The Diospi Suyana vision led to the founding of a modern hospital and dental and eye clinics in 2007. Five years later, the Children's House for the Diospi Suyana Kids Clubs was opened and, on 14 March 2014 the Diospi Suyana school was dedicated, which now has more than 500 students enrolled. Since 19 July 2016 the Diospi Suyana Radio has been on air too, broadcasting the good news of Christ to southern Peru. The compound for this huge state-of-the-art medical facility is located in the town of Curahuasi, Peru, situated at 2,650 miles above sea level in the South Peruvian Andes, where it enjoys an excellent strategic location just off the highway connecting the cities of Cusco, Abancay, and Lima.
More than 750,000 people, primarily Quechua Indians, live within a three-hour drive radius of this center. The hospital is equipped with 100 beds, six operating theaters, an intensive care unit, labs and x-ray facilities, and employs about 180 locals. In its first decade, the hospital treated 125,000 patients. The hospital system operates totally by gifts from the Lord. Its donations from individuals, corporations, and churches fund 80% of all costs, while the Quechuas pay 20%.
Dr. John travels all over the world, telling the story of the hospital and God's provision, never asking for funds. God provides through people who see His hand at work and long to join Him. Klaus and Tina want to serve among their people until their deaths. They pray each day that others will come to work alongside, as PeaceWeavers indeed, bringing hope and healing to God's precious people of Peru.
-Karen O'Dell Bullock
Posted in PeaceWeavers