FAQs
Updated May 2025
- THE BASICS -
What is TLC—and what makes it different from other healthcare providers?
The Luke Commission (TLC) is a healthcare institution delivering patient-first, compassionate care at scale—providing over 1.5 million outpatient visits in the past 20 years, including 300,000 in 2023 alone. From remote community outreaches to complex tertiary, surgical, and specialized care, we combine medical excellence with digital innovation and a deep commitment to love those often forgotten.
Why did TLC start in Eswatini?
Eswatini has the highest HIV rate in the world and among the highest burdens of cervical cancer and TB. TLC was built to meet urgent needs with dignity, especially where distance, cost, or stigma block access.
The early years were mobile, rugged, and relational. Today, TLC operates one of the largest integrated outreach and hospital-based systems in the country—still focused on going the last mile to reach patients.
Why is TLC often at the center of national conversations about healthcare in Eswatini?
Because while we responded patient by patient to the needs in front of us, we built a scalable model that others said couldn’t be built: systems that work, high quality care that reaches everyone, and models that don’t collapse under pressure—delivering some of the most cost-effective care in the region without sacrificing quality. That kind of progress challenges the status quo and draws attention, both good and bad.
How does TLC’s expenditure per outpatient visit compare to other service providers?
The Luke Commission sets a benchmark for cost-effective tertiary healthcare delivery in Africa, delivering higher impact at lower cost and contributing to greater health equity.
We serve at an average of $60 per outpatient visit—compared to $300+ in similar systems. Compassion, efficiency, and smart design make this possible.
Does TLC receive funding from the local Government?
Yes—but only recently. In 2024, TLC received $1.6 million from the Eswatini government (7% of our annual expenditure). After initial seed funding from our founders, the past 15 years have been sustained almost entirely by donors and partners in North America, including a 15-year USAID relationship that ended in 2025 due to global aid shifts.
How does TLC remain sustainable with such a large footprint?
Taking care of everyone and doing everything without equitable access to national investment proved unsustainable. We’ve accelerated our pivot to a diversified funding strategy that includes:
Grassroots donations and major gifts;
Social enterprise activities; and
Service level agreements—all designed for long-term resilience and durability.
To support this shift, we’ve built a model rooted in faith and driven by innovation and excellence through the EquiCare Partner Network, including:
Luvelo – our digital transformation backbone, available for global licensing;
Lijoye – our social enterprise hub supporting operations through ethical business;
Luvelwano – our care delivery platform for strengthening infracture networks; and
EL – our oxygen production company improving critical care infrastructure.
This approach doesn’t just sustain TLC—it creates a pathway for other sectors, healthcare networks, and communities to leapfrog outdated systems and build resilience from the inside out.
- OUR FOUNDATION -
Is TLC a faith-based organization? What does that mean in practice?
Yes. TLC is rooted in the Christian faith—not as a label, but as a way of life. We seek to follow the example of Jesus in every interaction—caring for the sick, defending the vulnerable, and showing unconditional love.
We don’t require belief to receive care, and we don’t use care to push belief. Our doors—and our hearts—are open to all.
Love isn’t a slogan for us—it’s our strategy to ensure no one is missed, no matter what. It compels us to reach the unreached, remain present in crisis, and show up faithfully in the hardest seasons—even when it costs.
Our faith shapes how we lead, how we serve, how we build teams, how we innovate, and how we pursue solutions where none seem visible.
We aim to care for every person as if they were our own father, mother, brother, sister, or child. Loving others is the heart behind everything we do.
“But he’s already made it plain how to live, what to do... It’s quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, and don’t take yourself too seriously—take God seriously.”— Micah 6:8
“My dear children, let’s not just talk about love; let’s practice real love. This is the only way we’ll know we’re living truly, living in God’s reality.”— 1 John 3:18
- MEDIA, POLITICS & MISINFORMATION -
What’s behind the recent media attacks against TLC?
A few individuals with vested interests feel threatened by efficiency, transparency, and effectiveness. TLC’s success in delivering patient-centered care at scale exposes what others have failed to deliver. We’ve stayed silent longer than most would—not because we’re weak, but because we hoped for wisdom. But silence in the face of falsehood can become complicity. So, we’re now responding with truth, transparency, and humility.
Why would anyone want to discredit a nonprofit healthcare organization?
Because real reform disrupts entrenched power and personal interests. TLC’s growth has revealed gaps, challenged monopolies, and re-centered healthcare on patients rather than politics. Some detractors prefer to disparage TLC instead of engaging in the work of change. But health should never be held hostage by ego or agenda, and this model's potential is bigger than any single political moment.
Did TLC receive funding from the Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini for COVID-19-related work?
No. TLC never received any COVID-19 funding support from the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) or the Ministry of Health. The only COVID-related funding TLC received came from PEPFAR, in recognition of our frontline role during the pandemic—including mass testing, building an oxygen plant, scaling up a national digital vaccination tracking platform that empowered a 100% vaccine utilization rate, and providing over 90% of the country’s critical care services for COVID-19 patients. Our audits are publicly available at www.lukecommission.org/reports.
Why has TLC been excluded from national strategy meetings?
Despite years of documented and faithful service and repeated requests to collaborate, TLC has been systematically sidelined—largely due to internal resistance from those leveraging influence and resources for personal or political gain. We remain open and committed to cooperation for the sake of the nation, if the environment allows for principled partnership without ethical compromise.
- IMPACT & INNOVATION -
How has TLC used technology to improve care?
Through Luvelo, we digitized 800,000+ patient records, powered excellence in healthcare delivery, launched the country’s first drone logistics network, innovated leapfrog solutions, and built a medical-grade oxygen plant—all to close the gap between need and access. It’s not about flash—it’s about real-world results.
What is Heartware—and why do you talk about it so much?
Heartware is how we shape the people who power the system. We believe tech can scale reach, but only people can scale trust. That’s why we invest just as much in character as we do in code. Our staff have shown the world what it looks like to serve with joy, resilience, and faith—even in the face of hardship.
Why are patients from all walks of life—including VIPs—coming to TLC?
After two decades, TLC has cared for one or more family members in nearly every household in Eswatini. That kind of trust can’t be bought—it’s built.
From rural elders to national leaders, people come for compassionate care, medical excellence, and the assurance that they’ll be treated with dignity and love. Emaswati have spoken with their feet—and that has challenged the status quo. We will continue to advocate for equitable access to quality healthcare for all.
- GLOBAL ATTENTION -
Why are The Washington Post and This American Life covering TLC?
After the USAID cuts in early 2025, journalists reached out to understand the real impact—and found a much deeper story. We didn’t seek the spotlight, but we’re not afraid of it. This is a moment to tell the truth—about the joy, the pain, and the solutions.
What do you hope people take away from these media pieces?
We want the world to know that sustainable, life-changing healthcare is possible—even in the hardest places—when you lead with integrity, serve with humility, and build systems that demand both accountability and results. We’ve lived the pain, but we’ve also built the possibility. Every challenge has become a catalyst for innovation, and every roadblock a reason to go further.
- ACCOUNTABILITY & THE FUTURE -
Is TLC truly accountable? Who checks your work?
Yes. We undergo third-party audits, comply with U.S. government rules and regulations, sign memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with local and international authorities, and hold ourselves to the highest ethical standards—internally and externally. Our audits are publicly available at www.lukecommission.org/reports.
How can people support TLC or get involved?
Give. Share. Pray.
Give
Support the Take 10 Challenge: 50,000 people giving $10/month helps provide care for 5,000 patients every month. www.lukecommission.org/take10.
With the loss of U.S. funding, your support is more crucial than ever. Major donors and foundations—we need your help. To learn more about other ways to give, visit www.lukecommission.org/donate
Share the need with those in your circle of influence..
Pray for resourcing to meet the critical need.
What's next for TLC?
We’re scaling globally, sustaining locally, and proving that where others see limits, we see possibility. We’re no longer just surviving—we’re building a model that others can carry forward. The systems we’ve built—both digital and human—are now being shared with other sectors, hospital networks, and health systems that want to replicate the model.
We’re not just growing. We’re multiplying impact.
