In the developing world, lack of access to
basic health care can have horrific results. Mercy Ships freely
provides relief through specialised operations that save lives,
improve quality of life and restore hope.Patients recuperate under
care in the ship’s ward.
Tumours
Grotesque and disfiguring tumours are not uncommon in the developing countries of Africa. Often benign, the growths begin small, but left untreated, grow to life-threatening size and render their victims social outcasts. In onboard operating theatres, highly skilled surgeons perform thousands of free maxillo-facial operations, transforming faces and saving lives from suffocation and starvation. With each individual life restored, the transformation is no less than miraculous .
Cleft Lip/Palate
Tens of thousands of children are born with cleft lip and/or palate every year. It is a condition easily repaired in the developed world, but babies born in the developing world have little option for corrective surgery. Cleft-lip babies often suffer from malnourishment because they cannot feed properly. Children who do survive are often rejected because of their deformity. Mercy Ships has restored the smiles of thousands of children and adults .
Congenital Abnormalities
Mercy Ships surgeons perform procedures on children to correct conditions they were born with such as clubfeet and bowed legs, giving them a chance to lead more normal lives for the first time.
Burns & Leprosy
For those disabled or disfigured by scarring, burn contractures
or the effects of leprosy, specialised plastic surgery procedures
can greatly increase mobility and improve quality of life.
Oral Disease
Not seen in the Western world since concentration camps, noma, or cancrum oris, is an infectious disease destroying oro-facial tissues. Predominantly affecting children, the disease advances quickly, spreading to the nose, lips and cheeks. Though both preventable and treatable, most of those afflicted with the ravenous disease have no access to even basic health care, and thousands die from the condition each year. Those who survive are left with not only disfigurement, but also experience difficulty eating, breathing and swallowing.
Mercy Ships performs numerous reconstructive facial operations on noma victims, affording them a chance to lead normal lives, and contributes to the eradication of noma through community health education, dental programmes and water and sanitation teaching. Poverty, malnutrition, poor oral hygiene, lack of sanitation, and diseases, particularly measles, all contribute to the risk of noma.
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