Mercy Ships on 60 Minutes
In 2013, Mercy Ships was proud to be featured on 60 Minutes. In the episode “Africa Mercy,” Correspondent Scott Pelley and the Africa Mercy crew tell the Mercy Ships story.
Editor’s note: Since “Africa Mercy” first aired, a $20 million donation toward a new ship was made by philanthropists Sue and Bill Gross.
Around the world, countless millions suffer with diseases that could be easily cured if those patients could reach modern medical care. For a fortunate few, there is a lifeline called “Africa Mercy.“As we first told you in February, she is the largest civilian hospital ship on the seas. But she is also the closest thing to a time machine you’re ever likely to see. Her largely American crew brings 21st century medicine to people who believe that illnesses are caused by evil spirits. The patients’ beliefs may seem archaic but their courage is to be admired. They suffer from diseases unseen in America-illnesses that can make you believe in curses. Spend a few days, as we did, aboard the Africa Mercy and you will see how two worlds meet at the intersection of courage and compassion.
She can be described in the usual dimensions of a ship; 500 feet in length, eight decks, a crew of 450. Or you can reckon Africa Mercy as a hospital; 90 nurses, 15 doctors, 78 beds and six operating rooms. One of the first doctors who invited us into surgery was Gary Parker, a maxillofacial surgeon, who came to the ship on lark.
Gary Parker: And I remember saying to myself, “When I get an opportunity I want to come, maybe for a few months, and just see what this is about.” See if I’m cut out of the right fabric for that kind of life.”
Scott Pelley: And how long have you been here?
Gary Parker: Twenty-six years.
You’ll understand why he stayed when you see the ship at work, as we did, in Togo, West Africa.
A lot of ways here haven’t changed in centuries, most live on two dollars a day. There are few medical facilities. When the ship comes in, folks line up by the thousands for free dental surgery, eye surgery, and maxillofacial procedures for cleft palates and other deformities.
Africa Mercy makes port in countries all along the arc of West Africa. Eighteen hundred miles where slave ships used to land.
Scott Pelley: Trace that coastline and you’ve put your finger on several of the poorest countries on Earth. Here in Togo, the lack of development and the poverty mean that one out of 10 children, one out of 10, dies before the age of five. They die of diseases that we just don’t see in the United States, including a particular kind of facial tumor that is a specialty of the ship. What you’re about to see is very hard to look at, but if you’re patient, it will be worth it.
Gary Parker is the chief surgeon and one of his patients, Edoh, was back for a check up 17 years after surgery. You’re thinking she’s disfigured now, but in 1995, at the age 9, a tumor destroyed her face and it was crushing her windpipe.
Gary Parker: She was struggling to breathe. I was amazed at the sense of community. Lots of people were waiting outside the gate and many with problems of their own. But when they saw Edoh, they picked her up, put her over her– over their heads and literally passed her through the crowd, over the gate, and into the screening because they recognized her needs were greater.
These tumors aren’t cancer, they’re benign. In fact, it’s tooth enamel that won’t stop growing. In the U.S., a dentist would remove it before it shows. But here, it’s understood to be a curse.
Gary Parker: These are people that go out at night and they forage for food. And then, in the day, they hide. They can’t go to the market. They certainly can’t go to school. They are isolated.
Scott Pelley: So these patients arrive and they’re coming up the gangway. What do you imagine that’s like for them?
Gary Parker: I’ve seen it happen over and over and over again that when they are greeted on the ship, or when they’re greeted at screening and someone comes and shakes their hand, it’s like “Somebody recognizes that I’m inside here.” You know, “I’m trapped. I can’t get away from this tumor. But I’m still in here.” And the healing begins when they get acceptance based on who they are, no conditions, just, “we know you’re in there, Fatimata, we know you’re in there.”
And that’s what he told a woman named Marta who’s been trapped behind a tumor that has been growing for three years. Her husband had banished her from the home.
Mercy Ships Welcomes Presidential Visit on board, in Toamasina Harbor
Presidential Visit: Malagasy president His Excellency Andry Nirina Rajoelina visited patients and volunteers on board Mercy Ships’ hospital vessel to see for himself the lives being transformed.
Day of the Seafarer: One Maritime Volunteer’s Story
On this Day of the Seafarer, Mercy Ships wants to honor all the people like Ishaka, volunteer assistant bosun on board the Global Mercy.
An Electrician’s Journey to Finding Purpose and Professional Growth
When Jean Jacques Diouf came on board for the 1st time, he’d packed his suitcase with enough supplies for one week. Learn more about his professional growth!
THE MSC FOUNDATION, THE MSC GROUP AND MERCY SHIPS INTERNATIONAL JOIN FORCES TO BUILD A NEW HOSPITAL SHIP
The new purpose-built hospital ship will expand the impact of Mercy Ships’ life-changing surgeries, anaesthetic care and surgical education for future generations of patients and healthcare professionals in sub-Saharan Africa.
The Woman Who Forged Her Way Through Walls: Florence Bangura’s Story
Florence’s journey from oldest to newest Mercy Ship came full circle when she met the Global Mercy™ in 2023, the same year that the purpose-built hospital ship began welcoming its patients on board. Today, you can find Florence, now 49 years old, down in the engine room as a hotel engineering assistant.
Transforming Sierra Leone’s Healthcare: A Vision for Safe and Affordable Surgery
As experts from the surgical and healthcare world gather for the 64th Annual Conference and Scientific Meeting of the West African College of Surgeons in Sierra Leone this week, a profound dedication to advancing surgical knowledge and practice in the region is palpable. At the forefront of discussions lies the conference’s pivotal theme: access to safe and affordable surgical and anesthetic care in West Africa. This theme highlights the pressing need to address disparities in healthcare capabilities and capacities across the region, especially the critical importance of equitable access to quality surgical interventions.
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