Mercy Ships is an international faith-based organization that uses hospital ships to perform life-changing surgeries and is dedicated to increasing access to healthcare in developing nations. It was founded in 1978 by Don Stephens whose inspiration for the charity included the international hospital ship SS Hope. Based on the fact that the vast majority of the world’s population lives near a sea port, Mr. Stephens determined that a floating hospital would be the most effective way to bring modern healthcare to the world’s most needy. As a result, the hospital ship Africa Mercy brings modern diagnostic and surgical equipment, including x-ray, CT scan and electrosurgical units to ports in Africa to provide advanced surgical services to the poorest of the world’s poor.
The Africa Mercy is a 16,500 ton hospital ship, 500 feet long, equipped with five state-of-the-art operating rooms as well as intensive care and ward bed space for up to 82 patients. The vessel is staffed by 400 volunteers from 40 different nations. Professionals including surgeons, dentists, nurses, health care trainers, teachers, cooks, seamen, engineers, and agriculturalists donate their time and skills to the effort. This floating hospital typically spends 10 months at one port. In recent years they visited the African countries of Sierra Leone, Togo and Guinea. In 2013-14 the Africa Mercy docked in the Republic of Congo where the volunteer crew provided more than 2,500 free surgeries.
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