After 4 Decades With Mercy Ships, Gary Parker, DDS, Reflects on a Life of Service

Gary Parker, DDS, was honored in 2025 with ACOMS’ Humanitarian Award, which recognizes outstanding philanthropic and humanitarian contributions provided by oral and maxillofacial surgeons (OMS) as determined by the ACOMS Board of Regents.

Dr. Parker’s philanthropic journey began in 1986, when he was working in North Wales and learned of Mercy Ships — an organization bringing hospital ships and health care professionals to areas of need. Since that first experience, he has treated thousands of patients in 18 countries, helping people with conditions such as facial tumors, cleft lips and palates, severe burns, destructive infections like noma, and other diseases affecting the face, head, and neck.

In this Q&A, Dr. Parker shares the “why” behind his commitment, what it was like to raise a family on a ship, and his advice for OMS professionals interested in becoming involved in humanitarian work.

ACOMS: Your journey with Mercy Ships began as a three-month commitment in 1986. What inspired you to stay for four decades, and how has that decision shaped your life and career?

Gary Parker, DDS (GP): During those first three months of volunteering, the people I encountered from Mercy Ships deeply impressed me with their vision to help the world’s poorest and their compassionate response. Meeting patients who lacked access to safe, timely, and affordable surgery underscored the importance of the education and training that I had opportunity to receive. The statistics transformed into real human beings whose stories I listened to, making their needs very real to me. These daily experiences motivated me to extend my commitment to stay with Mercy Ships for what has now turned out to be the entirety of my professional life.

ACOMS: You’ve performed thousands of surgeries in 18 countries, often in challenging conditions. Can you share a patient story that deeply impacted you?

GP: When I first met 27-year-old Sadio, she hid her face behind a scarf revealing only her eyes. With a glimmer of hope, she pulled it back revealing a large hole where her nose used to be. A noma infection had destroyed her nose when she was a young girl. Her brother confided their concern: She longed to be married, but no one would consider her due to the devasting deformity on her face. He then asked if I could create a nose that would make her marriageable. As I examined Sadio, I noticed the gentle resolve in her eyes, contrasting sharply with her facial deformity. Over the course of about a month on board we undertook three surgeries to reconstruct her nose, using muscle, skin, and tissue from her scalp and forehead.

When she and her brother left, they were filled with hope. A month later, her brother returned and asked to speak with me. His eyes sparkling, he shared that Sadio had already had one marriage proposal!  Seeing Sadio’s transformation and knowing that our work helped restore not only her face, but also her future, was profoundly moving.

ACOMS: As someone who raised a family aboard a hospital ship, how did you balance your professional responsibilities with personal life, and what was it like raising children in such a unique environment?

GP: Living and working on a hospital ship offers a remarkable blend of professional and personal life. With just a minute or two walk between work and home, I could easily share meals with my family, and being on call was less disruptive since I was only a few decks away. Raising children in an international community also gave them a broader perspective, helping them see the world through different cultural lenses in a way that would have been hard to replicate back home.

ACOMS: What are some of the most significant changes you’ve seen in global surgical care access since you began your work, and where do you see the greatest need today?

GP: Over the years, I’ve seen significant improvements in surgical care access in some of the nations we serve, particularly within the realm of oral and maxillofacial surgery. One striking example is the drastic reduction in untreated cleft conditions in some regions. On a recent visit to a West African nation, we found only a handful of untreated cases, when normally we would have found hundreds, thanks to the combined efforts of local surgeons we mentored on multiple prior visits and the support of other organizations.

However, challenges do persist, especially in areas impacted by civil war or health crises like the Ebola virus which have greatly set back health care systems. Nonetheless, the decrease in severe facial deformities from infections like noma highlights progress in primary health care and early intervention. In my perspective, some of the greatest needs are sustaining these gains and extending them to regions still struggling with instability and limited resources.

ACOMS: You’ve received numerous international honors, but what does receiving the ACOMS Humanitarian Award mean to you personally and professionally?

GP: Receiving this award is deeply meaningful to me because it’s a recognition from my peers — those who truly understand the challenges and rewards of this work. It reinforces the value of what we’re all striving to achieve and motivates me to continue supporting and developing the next generation of surgical professionals, whether they’re African colleagues or volunteers on the ship.

ACOMS: For young oral and maxillofacial surgeons who are interested in humanitarian work, what advice would you give them about getting started and staying committed?

GP: Two key pieces of advice come to mind. First, try to minimize debt, as it will limit your ability to volunteer, even short term. Second, it’s very beneficial to have at least two years of independent practice after your residency or fellowship. This ensures that you’re confident and capable in your skills before stepping into a low- resourced humanitarian setting.

ACOMS: Looking ahead, what are your hopes for the future of Mercy Ships and the broader mission of delivering surgical care to underserved populations?

GP: In the near future, I hope we can further enhance the effectiveness and impact of our training programs ensuring that more local health care providers are equipped with the skills they need. However, we recognize that skill-building alone isn’t enough. While we have initiatives to train across multiple areas, including biomedical equipment maintenance, broader infrastructure challenges such as inconsistent electricity and lack of essential medical supplies must also be addressed. We see firsthand that even the most skilled surgeons cannot succeed without a functioning health care ecosystem.

Looking ahead, my hope is that our efforts in Mercy Ships, in alignment with broader global health goals from organizations like the World Health Organization (WHO), the Lancet Commission, and the G4 Alliance will help create robust and resilient health systems. While we know our role is one part of a larger effort, we aim to support sustainable change so that eventually, local capacity is so strong that external humanitarian interventions become far less necessary.