HOW CRUISE SHIP PASSENGERS SHOULD PREPARE FOR ILLNESS OR INJURY

Online ship tracker

People travel on a cruise to find relaxation and enjoy a once in a lifetime journey. It is supposed to be fun with no hassle, after all, you’ve spent tons of your money just to arrange your dream cruise to travel the world. But, what if you got sick while on-board your ship? Or you got injured? Are you prepared in such an emergency? No one wants to be bothered while they are on a cruise or in any vacation, being prepared on an urgent situation like getting an injury or having an illness will help you get through your vacation with less hassle. If you are also planning to go on a cruise on your next travel adventure, it will be a big help for you to check and monitor your ship on an online ship tracker like marinetraffic24.com. The online tracker will provide real-time status and information regarding the position and location of your ship online, and you can check it at yourconvenience. 

Before packing for your next cruise adventure, let us give you some insights on how you should prepare for illness or injury while you are on a cruise.

Just this year in January 2019, the Royal Caribbean’s huge Oasis of the Seas cruise ship has brought some bad news that hundred of its passengers fell ill from the contagious norovirus stomach flu. As per the report of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a total of 561 passengers and 31 crew members were treated for the stomach flu on a cruise out of Port Canaveral in Florida. A number that’s more than the total of passengers in every cruise who fell ill from the norovirus last year of 2018. This incident could have been worse, as passengers on the cruise may face more serious crises at sea. In last year only, data provided by CDC to Kaiser Health News stated that 189 deaths were reported on cruises. Most cruise ships even have morgues, as well as medical centers on board its ships.

With millions of people taking a cruise every year, it is important to understand the care available in ships and their destinations. Your health and safety should, most importantly, be a priority while you are traveling. It is important to read beyond the cruise company’s marketing material to check the quality of medical accommodations before paying for a deposit for your cruise. Ken Carver, chairman of International Cruise Victims had said that most of the cruise lines are not prepared enough to tend in serious illness and accidents. He added that the passengers’ health is at risk if they get ill on a cruise ship.

Contrary to this statement, cruise line officials had advised that the safety and comfort of their guests and crew are of the utmost importance to the cruise industry. There are also rules and regulations for medical care on cruises. Most cruise ships usually have one or two doctors onboard to treat passengers that are sick. A cruise ship has a medical center that is usually found in one of the lower decks, with facilities that contain pharmacy and several beds. There might also be equipment that includes wheelchairs, stretchers, backboard for spine immobilization, oxygen, defibrillators, cardiac monitors and other equipment to check vital signs. If you are injured or got ill, you might need to visit the medical facilities on your ship. Staffs are on call for 24 hours for emergencies, though they generally have regular hours that are shown in the ship’s daily program. Doctors and nurses onboard can treat minor illnesses and injuries on board, but if their patients are severely injured or have a life-threatening condition, they will likely disembark the patient at the next port of call or evacuate them by helicopter to the nearest hospital for treatment. If the doctor had advised you that you are too sick to remain onboard, it is important that you only abide by the doctor’s order.   

It is also in the cruise ship policies that you have to tell the medical staff if you feel like getting sick or is experiencing signs of a serious ailment. Passengers will be advised to stay at their staterooms if the ship’s physician decides that your illness poses a risk of an outbreak in the ship. Some of the illness that can quickly spread includes influenza and the highly contagious norovirus. If you are suspected to have norovirus, the crew will isolate you from other passengers and will be told to remain at your cabin. Your key card will be deactivated to stop you from leaving your room. You will be required to remain in your room for up to 72 hours that you are symptom-free. The crew will bring your meals, drinks, and medication into your room and you are not allowed to leave even if you are feeling better. The quarantine for passengers with this kind of illness is being taken seriously by the cruise line, and this should not be disobeyed.

Before leaving for your cruise, it is also important that you check that your insurance is up-to-date and whether and how you’re covered for offshore medical issues. Only a few passengers know how their insurance works at sea, it is better to be prepared than never, so check your health insurer before taking your vacation. Ask how you are covered when you get sick and injured on a cruise.