About 2,600 free surgeries and 2,145 dental treatments are expected to be performed for Ghanaians over the next 10 months following the arrival of the world’s largest hospital ship, Global Mercy, at the Port of Tema on Tuesday.
The ship, making its fifth field service in Ghana, will also train about 250 local healthcare professionals through mentoring, education and clinical placements aboard the vessel.
The intervention comes as the country continues to face challenges in providing timely and affordable surgical care, particularly due to the uneven distribution of specialists and capacity constraints at some district hospitals.
In a statement issued and copied to The Ghanaian Times, the Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, described the visit as part of a partnership between Ghana and Mercy Ships that has spanned more than 30 years.
He said the latest field service was the first since the two sides reaffirmed their collaboration in 2025 and would complement Ghana’s National Surgical, Obstetric and Anaesthesia Plan (NSOAP), launched in 2024 to expand access to safe and equitable surgical care nationwide.
“It is therefore important that we view the arrival of the Global Mercy not as a stand-alone intervention, but as a collaborative effort to support and accelerate Ghana’s own national priorities,” he said.
The Minister said the success of the field service would be measured by its lasting impact on patients, healthcare workers and health institutions beyond the ship’s departure.
Mercy Ships’ Country Director in Ghana, Michael Nkeze, said the partnership was focused not only on providing surgical care but also on strengthening Ghana’s surgical systems.
He said the organisation would work with the Ministry of Health, universities and healthcare institutions, including the Ghana College of Physicians and Surgeons and the Ghana College of Nursing and Midwifery, to align the field service with national priorities.
The collaboration would also provide postgraduate training placements aboard the ship, he added.
Since its first mission to Ghana in 1991, Mercy Ships has conducted more than 2,670 surgical procedures, over 18,120 dental procedures and trained more than 2,920 healthcare professionals.
Since 1990, the organisation has completed 47 field services across 14 African countries and delivered more than 128,800 surgical procedures worldwide.
Mercy Ships says its approach has evolved from direct humanitarian assistance towards long-term health system strengthening through partnerships, education and locally-led capacity building, in line with Ghana’s NSOAP.
BY ABIGAIL ANNOH
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