A Floating Hospital: The Mercy's Vital Stats

Mercy Ships is an international charity-based non-governmental organization that operates the largest non-governmental hospital ships in the world. The organization was founded in 1978 by Don and Deyon Stephens in Lausanne, Switzerland, and has since provided surgical care and surgical education in Africa, as well as community development projects, community health education, mental health programs, agriculture projects, and palliative care for terminally ill patients. Mercy Ships' headquarters are in Garden Valley, Texas, and the organization has offices in 16 countries, as well as an Africa Service Center in Dakar, Senegal. The organization's first purpose-built hospital ship, the Global Mercy, joined the fleet in 2021 and is the largest civilian hospital ship in the world. The Global Mercy has a capacity of 150 crew members and is equipped with eye-surgery capabilities. Another one of Mercy Ships' vessels, the Africa Mercy, returned to Madagascar in February 2025, where it provided over 1,375 free surgeries and around 1,480 dental procedures to vulnerable patients.

The MV Global Mercy is the largest civilian hospital ship in the world

The MV Global Mercy is the world's largest civilian hospital ship. It is the first purpose-built hospital ship of Mercy Ships, a predominantly Christian interdenominational missionary organization. The organization provides free surgeries and healthcare services to those with little access to safe medical care, particularly in African nations.

The MV Global Mercy joined the Mercy Ships fleet in June 2021. It is part of a two-ship fleet, including the Africa Mercy, which is also one of the world's largest non-governmental hospital ships. The MV Global Mercy arrived in the Port of Dakar, Senegal, in February 2023, to begin its first surgical mission. In August 2023, the ship arrived in Freetown, Sierra Leone, for its next field service.

Mercy Ships was founded in 1978 by Don and Deyon Stephens and has been focused on partnering with African nations for the past three decades. The organization operates by sending volunteer professionals, including surgeons, nurses, and therapists, to provide life-changing surgeries and improved healthcare to underserved communities. Each year, more than 2,500 volunteers from over 60 countries serve on board the Mercy Ships fleet, accelerating access to safe surgical and anesthetic care.

The MV Global Mercy's construction was completed in partnership with Stena RoRo. The ship's arrival in Senegal marked the beginning of its mission to provide surgical care and training to local healthcare professionals. Over 170 healthcare professionals received training during this field service. The organization's work extends beyond medical care, as they also support the construction of in-country medical infrastructure to ensure a lasting impact on the communities they serve.

Mercy Ships has a rich history of transforming retired ocean liners and ferries into floating hospitals. The organization's first ocean liner, the Victoria, was purchased for its scrap value of $1 million and transformed into the MV Anastasis, which served from 1982 until 2007. Mercy Ships' dedication to providing hope and healing to the forgotten poor has led to their plans to expand their fleet with a new, purpose-built vessel announced in 2024.

The Global Mercy and Africa Mercy are the two largest non-governmental hospital ships

Mercy Ships is an international charity-based non-governmental organisation that operates the largest non-governmental hospital ships in the world. It was founded in 1978 by Don and Deyon Stephens in Lausanne, Switzerland. The organisation's mission is to provide hope and healing to those in need, with a focus on serving in Africa. Each year, Mercy Ships sends out hospital ships filled with volunteer professionals who provide life-changing surgeries and medical care to people in underserved communities.

The Africa Mercy, which began operations in 2007, was the largest non-governmental hospital ship until the construction of the Global Mercy. It has a capacity of 470 to 484 crew members and includes accommodations for families, couples, and individuals. The ship has five operating theatres, an intensive care unit, an ophthalmology unit, a CT scanner, x-ray facilities, laboratories, and a recovery ward with 75 to 82 beds.

Both ships have transformed the lives of people in need by providing free surgical care and education, community development projects, mental health programs, and palliative care. They have served in various countries, including Senegal, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Benin, Togo, and Madagascar, offering hope and healing to hundreds of thousands of people.

The MV Global Mercy was built in partnership with Stena RoRo

The MV Global Mercy is the world's largest civilian hospital ship and the first purpose-built floating hospital for the humanitarian organization Mercy Ships. The contract to build the vessel was awarded to Stena RoRo of Gothenburg, Sweden, in 2014. Stena RoRo was responsible for the design, contracting, and construction oversight of the complex vessel, which was built at the Tianjin Xingang Shipyard in northern China. The Global Mercy is a 174-meter (570 ft 10 in), 37,000-ton ship with 12 decks. The hospital is located on decks 3 and 4 and includes supply services, six operating theatres, 102 acute care beds, seven ICU beds, and 90 self-care beds. The ship also features dedicated classroom spaces and simulator labs with state-of-the-art technology for training local medical professionals. In addition, there is accommodation for 641 people and workspace areas.

The MV Global Mercy was constructed in partnership with Stena RoRo, joining the Mercy Ships fleet in June 2021. The ship's first mission was in Dakar, Senegal, strengthening African healthcare. In February 2023, the Global Mercy arrived at the Port of Dakar, Senegal, for her first surgical field service. In August 2023, the ship arrived in Freetown, Sierra Leone, for its next field service, where a crew of volunteer professionals performed 1,900 surgeries over 10 months. The Global Mercy has increased the surgical capacity and patient beds of Mercy Ships and is expected to transform more than 150,000 lives through surgery alone.

Mercy Ships is a predominantly Christian interdenominational missionary organization that provides free surgical care and surgical education in Africa, as well as community development and health education projects. The organization operates a two-ship fleet, including the Global Mercy and the Africa Mercy, and has been providing hope and healing to those in need since 1978. Mercy Ships' programs include training local professionals, providing new medical tools and resources, and renovating facilities. The organization's work is made possible by a dedicated community of volunteers, including surgeons, nurses, therapists, teachers, mechanics, and crew members.

Stena RoRo, a part of the Stena Line group, has expanded its fleet with the purchase of the RoRo ship Giuseppe Lucchesi, among other vessels. The company has also designed and ordered two hybrid cargo ships from the Chinese shipyard CMI Jinling, which can be powered by methanol or conventional fuel. Stena RoRo has been involved in various projects as market experts, brokers, and contract supporters.

The MV Caribbean Mercy offered berths for 150 crew members

The MV Caribbean Mercy is a hospital ship that was purchased by Mercy Ships in 1994. Mercy Ships is an international charity-based non-governmental organisation that operates the largest non-governmental hospital ships in the world. The MV Caribbean Mercy was previously known as the MS Polarlys, a Norwegian coastal ferry. After being purchased, the ferry was transformed into a hospital ship.

The Caribbean Mercy was fitted with a highly specialised eye surgery unit and could accommodate up to 150 people while in port. She also had facilities for conferences and seminars, as various programmes were offered to update medical teams in ports on the latest techniques. Her fuel and water tanks provided a cruising range of 12 days or 3,600 miles. The crew onboard the Caribbean Mercy offered close to 289,000 services, valued at over $100 million, with 348,800 people as direct beneficiaries. They performed more than 7,000 surgeries, including cataract removal, strabismus, dental, and countless orthopedic procedures.

The MV Caribbean Mercy is just one of the hospital ships operated by Mercy Ships. The organisation's fleet also includes the Global Mercy and the Africa Mercy, with plans to expand further with a new, purpose-built vessel. These hospital ships provide a vital service, bringing state-of-the-art medical care to people in need, especially in regions where resources are scarce.

The MV Global Mercy is the first purpose-built hospital ship for Mercy Ships

The MV Global Mercy joined the Mercy Ships fleet in June 2021 and is the largest civilian hospital ship in the world. The ship was constructed in partnership with Stena RoRo. In February 2023, the Global Mercy arrived in the Port of Dakar, Senegal, to begin its first surgical field service. Over 170 healthcare professionals received training during its time in Senegal.

The Global Mercy is one of the world's two largest non-governmental hospital ships, the other being the Africa Mercy. Each year, more than 2,500 volunteers from over 60 countries serve on board these ships. The volunteers include professionals such as surgeons, dentists, nurses, health trainers, cooks, and engineers.

Mercy Ships provides free surgeries and healthcare services to those with little access to safe medical care. The organisation has focused on partnering with African nations for the past three decades. In addition to providing medical care, Mercy Ships also works with in-country partners to provide training to local healthcare professionals and support the construction of medical infrastructure.

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