West Africa Regains Floating Hospital Access

A global charity confirmed it is bringing a state-of-the-art hospital to those in need along Africa's west coast. 

Because over 50% of the world's population lives within 100 miles of the coast, Texas-based Mercy Ships can sail modern hospital ships directly to people in The Gambia and Senegal without access to medical care.

The newest ship in the Mercy Ships feet welcomes patients on board in the port of Dakar, Senegal.

In 2023, Mercy Ships will serve patients in Senegal and The Gambia with six operating rooms and 199 beds.

The Global Mercy hospital will bring new technology and larger spaces to the field service.

For Senegal field service, the new hospital has several advantages.

Such as, off-ship facilities, like dockside medical tents, have been moved on board. This change saves weeks of setup and tear-down, empowering more time for surgeries.

And built-in cameras will enable trainees to watch surgeries remotely, expanding training opportunities.

Professionals, including surgeons, dentists, nurses, healthcare trainers, teachers, cooks, seamen, engineers, and agriculturalists, donate their time and skills to charity. 

Between October 2021 and January 2022, the Mercy Ships patient selection team visited all 14 regions of Senegal.

With the participation of the Chief Medical Officers of these regions, more than 900 patients have been selected for consultation with a surgeon, hoping to provide free surgery.

Don Stephens founded Mercy Ships in 1978 by purchasing the Anastasis, where he and his family lived for ten years. And Gary Brown was elected Chairman of the Board of Directors of Mercy Ships International, effective January 1, 2023.

Mercy Ships is committed to responsibly using the resources provided to us to bring hope and healing to those in need. It has worked in more than 70 countries providing services valued at more than $1 billion and treating more than 2.5 million direct beneficiaries.