By Brendan and Shannon Petersen
What has been in our minds and hearts over the past year in Mandritsara?
Willow and Joey and a Mandritsara sunset
The grief of seeing friends returning to their home country AND the excitement of new friends coming in the future.
The joys of seeing our Malagasy doctor colleagues grow and learn AND the heartbreak and heartache of caring for seriously ill patients where despite all our best efforts to help them, it just simply isn’t enough.
The sadness of meeting women who have lost babies during pregnancy or childbirth AND the joy of seeing their hope fulfilled as we help them to have a safe and healthy delivery.
The richness of living in a Christian community with Malagasy and foreign co-workers AND the realities of the odd and unique upbringing that our kids experience.
We are Shannon (GP Obstetrician) and Brendan (GP) Petersen, with our 3 kids (Willow (7), Joey (5) and Summer (1)), and these are some of the realities that we, as a family from Australia, following Jesus in Mandritsara, face in our ministry and in our family life. We have been living in Mandritsara for just over 4 years now and it has been a life- changing experience for all of us. It is a life full of richness and experience unlike anything else, and also full of challenges and grief that the western world tries its best to shelter us from.
So what does 2026 hold for us?
At the hospital, we are very excited for what 2026 could look like for the medical team at HVMM. We recently received news that 2 of our current Malagasy doctors have been accepted into a new medical training programme - an international post-graduate diploma in family medicine (or general practice as we would call it in Australia/the UK). This is organised by the International Christian Medical and Dental Association (ICMDA). We believe this will not only strengthen the quality of medical care at HVMM for the present but will also be investing in a healthier Madagascar wherever these doctors eventually end up living and working. Dr Emma and Dr Henintsoa will begin this study in late January and it will run for 2 years – they will continue to work full time while we support them in their study and mentor them during the training. Both of them have a real desire to grow in medical knowledge and experience, and this diploma represents a great opportunity for a Christian training programme designed for settings such as ours in Mandritsara. If you are interested in supporting this financially, there will be more information at the end of this update.
Brendan & Shannon with Dr Aimee, Dr Emma and Dr Miandrisoa
Some of the Good News Hospital doctors at the recent 30th anniversary celebrations
We will have new senior doctors arriving - one from the UK and 2 from the USA - and with this, many new potential opportunities at the hospital. We will be able to provide better levels of supervision and training for the current doctors, we hope to be able to optimize the day-to-day care that we provide, and there will also be potential for increased collaboration and training with nursing staff and the community health team.
Shannon training the midwives
For the maternity department, the vision is to continue investing in the midwives with the goal that they can continue to love and serve the women of Mandritsara and beyond for many years to come. We are regularly encouraged by their unity, their passion for the work and the women they serve, and by the growth that we have seen. HVMM often receives the most challenging obstetric cases from a large referral network, and our midwives do an incredible job.
As a family our goal for this coming year is connection. Connection to Jesus, to one another, and deepened relationships with those around us. Living cross culturally and working with difficult cases at the hospital on a regular basis regularly reminds us of our weakness and our need for Jesus - and his command to abide in him. With the expat missionary team regularly changing, short term visitors/workers coming and going, Jesus and our family are some of the few constants in our life - so growing more connected to one another is a key priority! And finally deepened relationships with those around us - those on team, our Malagasy brothers and sisters that we work with at hospital, and key friendships for our kids - engaging and embedding ourselves in community is a goal for this coming year.
Willow on her way to school with Summer
We would love your prayer for:
Our family and in particularly our kids with the constant transition they experience of short and long-term team-mates and friends coming and going.
For the medical training starting at the end of this month (January 2026) – if you are interested in supporting this financially, please contact Richard Bulmer (Treasurer of Friends of Mandritsara Trust UK) on fomttreasurer@mandritsara.org.uk
For deepened connection and relationships as a family, as a team and in the community as well.
That the knowledge of the love of Jesus would grow in the hearts of our Malagasy colleagues, would shine out into their communities and villages, and that the love of Jesus would be seen and known throughout Mandritsara and beyond.