The renewal of a partnership agreement between two leading faith-based medical charities will see isolated communities across Africa receive life-changing surgical care, extending their reach further inland and across a broader spectrum of the continent’s population.
The memorandum of agreement between Mercy Ships and Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF), which was launched in Madagascar, renews a previous partnership that ran from 2014 to 2016, with the 2 organisations also working together in Liberia.
Mercy Ships operates state-of-the-art hospital ships that provide free surgeries and healthcare services to sub-Saharan nations which have limited access to protected surgical care. The logistical support provided by Mission Aviation Fellowship will allow the Mercy Ships teams to access hard-to-reach parts of Madagascar and supply transport for patients needing critical surgical interventions.
“Traveling by road in Madagascar may be incredibly difficult as a consequence of the rough terrain and poor infrastructure,” Michael Jurgensen, MAF Madagascar Country Director, said. “In many cases, reaching distant villages can take days by automotive, draining invaluable time and energy.
“However, with MAF Madagascar’s support, the [Mercy Ships] patient selection team can cover vast distances swiftly and safely, enabling them to go to multiple locations inside a brief period.
“Flying not only saves time for the choice team but additionally ensures the team can travel to judge and choose patients from probably the most isolated areas for surgery on-ship at a later date.”
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Madagascar has just one surgeon per 100,000 people, making receiving obligatory surgery unattainable for many individuals. According to a 2016 study from BMJ Global Health, only a fifth of the population can receive surgical services inside a two-hour window, while 95% can be financially ruined in the event that they required surgery.
“By transporting Mercy Ships teams with our aircraft to the inside of Madagascar, we offer help, hope and healing to residents with the surgical care they desperately need,” Bastiaan de Waal, Africa Regional Director of MAF, said.
“The need is high in these areas, and these people in isolated communities are equally entitled to care. We are pleased to partner alongside Mercy Ships to support this often-forgotten group.”
Mercy Ships’ hospital ship, the Africa Mercy, has been docked at Toamasina, the capital of the Atsinanana region on the east coast of Madagascar, since February. Its teams have been actively collaborating with Madagascar’s Ministry of Health to discover probably the most pressing needs and have been delivering surgery and training.
Bernard van den Bosch, who has worked for each MAF and Mercy Ships, and is currently the Director of the Africa Services Centre at Mercy Ships, is passionate about the partnership, with further joint initiatives being explored in other African nations.
“We are confidently re-engaging with MAF because together we’re stronger. The country of Madagascar has many hard-to-reach areas, and MAF is the important thing to accessing them,” he said.
“Non-profit organisations can ‘compete’, but ultimately, all of us serve the identical goal. I see many opportunities for future collaboration and intensive joint efforts.”
