Posts

Africa Mercy

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A talented surgeon who is always seeking to learn, Dr. Thierno Bah has traveled to cities around the world for trainings and conferences. His experience and skill as an ophthalmic surgeon have already made him a vital part of Guinea’s surgical ecosystem.

International Women’s Day: Sierra Leone’s Florence Bangura is fostering opportunities for growth in all women, starting with herself

At a young age, Florence Bangura was barred from working and married off by her father. But the adversity may be the reason the 49-year-old from Sierra Leone is today the embodiment of what International Women’s Day is all about.

A Decade of Giving Back: One Maritime Volunteer’s Story

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As a member of the international community living and working on board the Global Mercy™, volunteer assistant bosun Ishaka Sesay is conscious that he has become an ambassador for his home country of Sierra Leone.  “That is why… people never see me with a frowning face, always with a big smile,” he explained. “That will take you a long way, toward whatever you do.” 

Reuniting with Vanya, Years After Surgery

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In 2015, in an operating room on board the floating hospital of the Africa Mercy®, the course of Vanya’s life changed. Until then, the 11-year-old had spent her childhood challenged by windswept legs that curved sideways. The condition – often caused by a combination of genetic factors and malnutrition – kept her from walking effortlessly or wearing the skirts and leggings she longed to wear.

Hospital ship arrives in Madagascar to deliver surgical care and training

TOAMASINA, MADAGASCAR – International charity Mercy Ships yesterday [February 1st] returned to Madagascar to bring transformative surgical education and free, life- changing surgeries. Freshly refitted hospital ship, the upgraded Africa Mercy® has arrived at the island nation to build on the charity’s longstanding collaboration and will provide specialized surgeries in various fields, including maxillofacial and ear nose and throat, general, pediatric specialized general, pediatric orthopedic, cataract surgery, and reconstructive plastics.

Africa Mercy® heads to Madagascar after recrewing in East London: Extensive South African upgrades will benefit Mercy Ships’ future surgical offering

EAST LONDON, SOUTH AFRICA 25 JANUARY 2024 – This week, following a recrewing effort, the hospital ship the Africa Mercy® departed from the Port of East London for service within the nation of Madagascar for the next 10 months. During an eight-month refit in Durban’s Dormac Shipyard, the ship underwent extensive repairs and maintenance to prolong and improve the vessel’s service life and improve the quality of the ship’s medical services.

Bringing Hope and Healing: What’s on the Horizon in Madagascar

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In 2024, Mercy Ships is excited to add the next chapter to our decades-long collaboration with Madagascar. During this coming field service, we plan to bring hope and healing anew by providing transformative surgical education as well as life-changing free surgeries to patients on board the Africa Mercy®. These operations will cover a range of specialties including maxillofacial and ENT, general, pediatric specialized general, pediatric orthopedic, and reconstructive plastics.

Supporting Safe Surgery: How a Biomedical Technician Found Her Place

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If you were asked to picture a hospital crew, your mind may jump first to doctors, surgeons, or nurses. But it takes so many kinds of specialists, each with their own skills, aspirations, and tools, to keep a hospital running. Deborah Nutsugah worked in a hospital in her home country of Ghana as a biomedical technician, specializing in handling and maintaining the medical equipment used for patient care. “I make sure this equipment is safe to be used on the patient, and also safe for use by the surgeons and the nurses,” she explained.

2024: Mercy Ships doubles down efforts to bring surgical care and training to sub-Saharan Africa as studies pinpoint critical gaps in surgical, obstetric, and anesthetic care

More volunteers than ever are needed to devote their time to international charity Mercy Ships as it prepares to start 2024 with two hospital ships in service as the momentum to deliver improved surgical care across Africa intensifies. The charity’s newest hospital ship, the Global Mercy®, continues to provide surgeries in Sierra Leone, where it has been since August 2023, while the Africa Mercy™ will start service in Madagascar.

Meet the “Faithful Servant” of the Mercy Ships Rehab Team

While the Africa Mercy® and Global Mercy™ were docked in Senegal, volunteer physical therapists from all around the world came on board for months at a time to offer their skills and expertise. More than 350 patients came across many different volunteers on the physical rehabilitation team – but there was one familiar face that almost every patient met: Mame Birame Sy.