Inspired by John Paul II, Catholic maternal health organization celebrates 30 years

 

CNA Staff, Mar 29, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

It all began with Pope John Paul II.

In the 1980s, the late pope encouraged Dr. Robert Walley, a Catholic obstetrician and gynecologist who died in 2020, to provide life-affirming health care to women in need. Walley went on to found MaterCare International (MCI), which is now celebrating 30 years of supporting ethical maternal health care in developing regions around the globe.

“MaterCare International is vital for women’s health because it provides lifesaving maternal care to some of the world’s most underserved regions while maintaining an ethical approach that values both the mother and the unborn child,” Jennifer Derwey Deane, communications director at MCI, told CNA.

MCI provides emergency obstetric care, remote transportation for rural communities to hospitals, and training for midwives and health care providers. The organization also prioritizes research into maternal health solutions.

“Since its founding, MCI has worked to provide essential medical services, create sustainable models of maternal care, and advocate for ethical practices in maternal care, all while empowering local health care providers, like midwives and traditional birth attendants, through training and sustainable practices,” Deane said.

MCI has established branches in Canada, Poland, Australia, and previously in the United States and Ireland. Its Canada branch has developed outreach projects all throughout the world, including in Rwanda, Haiti, Kenya, and Ghana. MCI’s model involves working in partnership with local communities in order to design sustainable models in various developing areas.

The organization operates solely on charitable donations and takes no assistance from government agencies. It also welcomes health care professionals who are faithful to MCI’s mission to join project initiatives as volunteers.

Bringing care to underserved rural communities in Uganda

This month, MCI opened a maternity center in Nyabwina, Uganda. A team of MCI Catholic health professionals, working with local Church leaders, launched the St. Claret Maternity Center in the Nyabwina village, which serves the local region in the Sheema/Mbarara District of Uganda.

Archbishop Lambert Bainnomugisha of Mbarara blessed the facility on its opening day, March 6.

The project began when the Sisters of St. Joseph of Tarbes reached out to MCI, explaining the local community’s need for improved maternal health.

In addition to poor roads and flash flooding during the rainy season, the region faces many challenges to maternal health, with a high maternal death rate due to infection, lack of postnatal care, and malnutrition.

MCI worked with the local religious sisters to develop outreach centers in remote villages as well as to develop a maternity unit with proper staffing and equipment.

A Catholic perspective on health

Deane noted that many international maternal health programs “are influenced by policies that promote abortion and contraception as primary solutions, often neglecting basic fundamental maternal health care needs.” MCI combats that by providing “life-affirming” health care for women.

“We recognize that motherhood is a sacred vocation, and our work reflects this belief by ensuring that expectant mothers receive the care and respect they deserve,” Deane said.

The organization prioritizes what Deane calls “the vocation of medicine.”

“The practice of medicine without vocation is a purely technical or transactional approach to health care, devoid of deeper moral, ethical, or compassionate commitment,” she said.

“When medicine is practiced without vocation, it risks becoming impersonal and utilitarian, focusing solely on procedures, efficiency, and outcomes without genuine care for the dignity and well-being of the patient.”

MCI brings faith and medicine together. “It combines faith and practice in a meaningful way that builds up the practitioner, the patient, and the community that surrounds them both,” Deane explained.

MCI also prioritizes following the teachings of the Catholic Church in its care practices.

“We not only offer high-quality maternal health services but also focus on the moral and ethical implications of care, following the rich teachings of the Catholic Church,” Deane said. “This makes MCI a voice for life and an advocate for a comprehensive approach to maternal health care that respects both medical needs and advancements as well as the sanctity of human life.”

Founding and future

Deane explained that MCI is devoted to its founding mission.

“The idea for MaterCare was inspired by Pope John Paul II, who personally asked Dr. Walley to create an organization that would address the growing crisis of maternal mortality and health care inequities, particularly in areas where Catholic teachings on the sanctity of life were not being adequately respected in medical practices,” she said.

This idea, Deane said, “was first introduced at a plenary meeting of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace in 1982.” It took more than 10 years of planning and support among health care workers worldwide before the organization took shape and was formally established in 1995 in Canada.

Pope John Paul II’s encyclical Evangelium Vitae, in which he called on health care professionals to promote a culture of life, was “the final inspiration” for the organization’s founding, Deane said. The encyclical was published in 1995, the year of MCI’s founding.

The future goals of the organization are twofold.

“Looking to the future, our goals include expanding our reach to even more regions where women still lack access to essential maternal health care,” Deane said. “We aim to continue providing training for health care professionals in underserved areas, building strong partnerships with local groups and religious orders, and advocating for policies that respect the dignity of life and prioritize maternal health.”

MCI also aims to develop the realm of ethical maternal health care.

“Our vision also includes increasing awareness about the importance of ethical maternal health care and advocating for global recognition of the Catholic approach to maternal health,” Deane said.

For its 30-year anniversary, the organization announced the MaterCare International Rome Conference — an event to commemorate the founding and a call to action to develop maternal health care around the world. It will bring together faith leaders, health care professionals, and pro-life advocates to promote care for mothers in need.

“Catholic health care professionals of the next generation are relying on us to provide them with the space to study, learn, grow, and practice,” Deane said.