Mercyships's blog

Little Kossi was born with Clubfoot. This condition causes the foot to grow inward, retarding normal growth and leaving the side of the foot where the bottom should be - crippling the child.

In many African cultures, this abnormality is viewed as a curse and makes a child an outcast. But Kossi's mother, Akouwa, took action to prevent that. She brought the 10-month-old baby to a Mercy Ships screening in Togo. He became the first patient in West Africa to take part in the Ponseti Management Programme, now being established onboard the Africa Mercy.  read more »

Theresa Rowntree, (75) from Braintree in Essex, who recently lost her sight is part of a knitting team producing teddy bears for child patients on board the world’s largest charity hospital ship, the Africa Mercy.

Rebecca Bond from Bassingbourn, Hertfordshire, was deeply touched by stories from her sister, Veronica Weatherhead, a nurse from Royston, who volunteered on board the Africa Mercy in Togo earlier this year.  read more »

Akissi, an 18-year-old girl, waits patiently in line. Slowly, she moves closer to the examination area. She thinks back on the four months since her first medical screening near her home in northern Togo. She has been anxiously awaiting this day. The moment has finally come, and she prays that the doctor will say to her, “Yes, we can help you.”  read more »

“We could cry all day because we go back to the same misery. We have no more hope.”

These are the heart-wrenching words of a few despairing women, who came to the Africa Mercy for vaginal vesicular fistula (VVF) surgery. Not all surgeries are successful. At times, several procedures may be required to repair the injury, and sometimes there is nothing else that can be done. These women were preparing to return to their homes as they came, with no money, no hope, and constant urine leakage.  read more »

Nearly one hundred elementary school children sat very still in a cramped, dim Togolese classroom. Mercy Ships Dental Hygienist, Donna Bartholomew, stood in her blue medical scrubs at the front of the room, smiling at all of the children

“Raise your hand if you have a toothbrush,” Donna asked.

Half of the children's hands shot into the air. The other half glanced at their peers, realizing they should probably put their hands up, too. Up they went.  read more »

Father’s Day will be extra special this year for surgeon Leo Cheng as he and his 18-year-old daughter Kat will be preparing for a six week trip together to volunteer on the world’s largest charity hospital ship.

The father and daughter from Cambridge are heading to Togo in West Africa at the beginning of July to volunteer for the international charity Mercy Ships which provides free medical care and humanitarian aid via its hospital ship the Africa Mercy.   read more »

Mercy Ships is celebrating International Children’s Day today (1st June). In the last 30 years Mercy Ships has helped save the lives of thousands of children who have suffered at the hands of poverty.  read more »

If we told you we wanted to increase productivity by 32%, reduce our CO2 by 20% and reduce our fuel running costs by £470,000 a year, would you feel able to help us achieve this?

With your help we can upgrade the Africa Mercy’s 30-year-old generators to make them quieter, fuel efficient and able to cope for the next 30 years of service.  read more »

Mercy Ships UK has appointed a new Head of Fundraising as part of its commitment to developing the international charity throughout the UK.

Sarah Balser, who has more than 20 years experience in the fundraising sector, joined Mercy Ships this month and will oversee a team that raises funds for the world’s largest charity hospital ship – the Africa Mercy. The ship, crewed by more than 400 volunteers, provides free medical and humanitarian aid to the world’s poorest people.  read more »

Our marathon runners are helping us to transform the lives of the world’s forgotten poor. One by one.

You could be part of it!

Mercy Ships UK has guaranteed places for the Virgin London Marathon on 17th April 2011.  Join our team and raise money to help fund our hospital ship whilst having an experience of a lifetime with thousands of other runners.

   read more »