The majority of the 400 on-board personnel are volunteers. Around 1200 people from over 40 nations volunteer with Mercy Ships each year, working on board for a minimum of two weeks. Health conditions treated include tumours, cleft lip, burns injuries, hernias, and cataracts among many others. Surgery includes plastic reconstruction, orthopaedic surgery, ophthalmic surgery, gynaecological, and general surgery. The hospital ship also provide dental care.
Mercy Ships plans to add another purpose-built ship to the fleet soon. It will contain six operating rooms, an ICU, laboratory, diagnostic radiology, and pharmacy services with 154 patient beds to allow for pre-op and post-op care to take place on board. The ship will accommodate an average crew of 600 including cooks, engineers, administrators as well as nurses, doctors and other healthcare professionals.
The US Mercy
In addition to civilian hospital ships, the defence forces of many developed countries have hospital ships among their naval fleet. Once such ship is the Mercy, which is part of the US navy and is a converted oil tanker. The USNS Mercy is a 1000-bed ship, larger than most hospitals in Australia. It has 11 operating suites, 80 intensive care beds and 15 patient wards. Personnel on board the ship are from many countries including Malaysia, Indonesia and Australia.
The US naval hospital ship contains state-of-the-art technology in order to provide humanitarian support to those in need including multinational allied forces. Crew on board also include veterinarians and engineers who can assist with planning and building small schools and hospitals ashore in affected areas.
Working on board a ship is not for everyone. Although the civilian Mercy Ships have berths large enough to accommodate families, the US Mercy can accommodate a crew of 1200-1300 personnel and they have very little privacy. For most personnel working on board a hospital ship, the lack of personal space is offset by the opportunity to travel and to make a difference in the lives of people in need.