Towards a Holistic Model of Healthcare: The Healing Mission of the Catholic Church as a Field Hospital in Africa

In this study, I propose the need for a model of healthcare in Africa grounded in the healing mission of the Catholic Church understood as a “field hospital,” a pastoral image proposed by Pope Francis to describe the Church’s duty to accompany a wounded humanity. In the African context, where many communities face persistent challenges such as poverty and social inequalities, the Church’s healthcare and pastoral ministries play a critical role in promoting integral healing. Drawing on the model of Church-as-field-hospital, African communitarian values, and the lived experiences of grassroots communities, I argue that authentic healthcare needs to address not only physical illness but also the spiritual, psychological, and sociocultural dimensions of human well-being. The “field hospital” metaphor provides a theological and pastoral framework that prioritizes compassion, proximity to the suffering, and practical responses to human vulnerability in the realm of healthcare. By engaging the Church’s longstanding commitment to healthcare in Africa, this research demonstrates how Catholic institutions can contribute to a more integrated approach to healthcare, showing how ecclesiology and healthcare ethics can work together to produce positive outcomes for grassroots communities. Ultimately, the study envisions a model of healthcare that reflects the Church’s mission of mercy, promotes human dignity, and fosters communal solidarity in the pursuit of holistic healing. I propose that such a holistic healthcare mission of the Church must begin from below, that is, from the perspective of marginal grassroots communities. Since discussing the healthcare situation across the entire African continent is complex and practically impossible, I will focus on Kenya as a representative case study.