Azamara Quest - my unscheduled tour of a Kochin eye hospital

Here is a story that hopefully you will never need to consider, but nonetheless may I tell it here as an experience.

Knowing that India is probably not the best place in the world to have a medical issue I'd been really careful. You know we are all a bit goofy at some stage of a trip to an unknown country. I looked left and right and then again a couple more times before crossing the road in Mumbai. I abstained from any of the street food alone just in case. I watched where I was stepping so as not to trip. I was careful. Very careful. My travel insurance company would have been proud of me. I could have starred in their next commercial.

So you can imagine how stupid I felt when one night getting up out of bed to attend to the necessary I poked myself hard in the eye. Really hard. My eye wasn't shut and I stabbed myself fair and square right in the middle. It ached like mad as soon as I did it and I knew something was up.

I went to see Doctor Oliver the next morning and as soon as he saw it he too knew something was up. By that time my vision in the right eye was totally blurred and very sore. "I don't like the look of that at all" he said once he had examined my eye properly. "You need to go to hospital and have it looked at".

So off I went for five hours of tests at the eye hospital in Kochin. I was very concerned and scared, but fortunately tests showed that I had bruised my cornea badly with no retinal damage. A course of anti-biotic eye drops for ten days would see me right.

The purpose of recounting this story is to say just how impressed I was with the arrangements made by the ship. All I needed to do was show up at the gangway and the rest was all arranged via the port agent. The hospital had a car to take me there, I was led to a VIP waiting room, had all the tests done, was issued with the medication and delivered back to the ship. I had an interpreter from the hospital with me the whole time, but to be honest it wasn't necessary. The doctor spoke perfect English as was not long back from a stint in the UK. All the equipment at the hospital was top notch (new Carl Zeiss eye scanners for example).

Once I was back on the ship the nurse Elizabeth and Doc Oliver kept an eye on me (sorry for the pun) to make sure there was no infection. All in all extremely good and very comforting. I know money is trivial when it comes to your health, but it is worth mentioning that the fees on the ship for arranging all of this was $121 and the visit to the hospital $250. I really felt I dodged a bullet compared to what it could have been. Next time I intend to dodge my eye. I won't be repeating that one. My eye now is fine BTW.

Thanks to all on the ship, at the port and in the hospital for helping me.

Phil

Oh Phil, I'm so glad you're ok. What a scare for you.

Do keep us updated on your condition.

Sincerely, Bonnie

Ooh, so easily done Phil. Good to know that you were well looked after. I think we under estimate the health services provided in other countries so it was great you received excellent treatment as well as support from the Azamara medical team.

I hope your vision is returning to normal and it hasn't spoiled your cruise too much.

Oh Phil, I'm so glad you're ok. What a scare for you.

Do keep us updated on your condition.

Sincerely, Bonnie

All well now Bonnie. No ill-effects. A relief.

Phil

Having suffered for years from corneal erosion I know that eye pain is frightening and very painful. So glad you were somewhere you could get treatment. Another great reason for traveling by cruise ship -- good people to help in times of trouble. Thanks for telling us your experience -- can survive and even thrive all over the world.

Good heavens, Phil! I sure am glad that everything is O.K. now. :eek:

Garry

Glad you are healed and were well taken care of, that speeds recovery when you are supported by the ships people.

I know you did not plan to give us one of your balanced reviews on the Indian medical facilities but - we you just had to!

Glad to read all was well run and more importantly that all is well

Hi Phil,

Thanks for sharing your experience with us. Nice to hear that Azamara helped out as much as possible, and of course, that you are doing better now !

Happy Holidays to you and your family !

Wow- glad yp uare ok. .sounds like you forfot to turn the light on. i need to go find my baby flash light for cruise.

I have always believe that many nations have good medical help but thankfully we do not have to see it.

Very pleased to hear it all went well and that even in countries where we wouldn't necessarily subject ourselves to medical care things can work out so well, thank goodness otherwise we'd be calling you Pirate Peter, lol!

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Very pleased to hear it all went well and that even in countries where we wouldn't necessarily subject ourselves to medical care things can work out so well, thank goodness otherwise we'd be calling you Pirate Peter, lol!

 

 

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Thanks Wendy. I did have to wear a patch for a bit and did make comment it would have been more appropriate on the previous cruise as we passed through the Gulf of Aden! Pirate party!

Phil

Phil

Good to hear that all is now okay and that you were so well looked after.

Julie

Thanks Julie. Hope you are well and have a lovely Christmas and New Year.

Phil

I have not been on these forums for a couple of weeks, so I just saw this thread.

Very glad to read that you are OK, Phil, and that Azamara took all the right steps to assist.

Thanks Pam.

I should have said at the beginning that this isn't the first occasion I've had to rely on Azamara arranging medical care for me. It happened in May too when I was on Journey. A medical facility in Kusadasi. That one was probably more scary. Don't want to go into too much detail, but they really came through for me there too and whilst I don't want to call on them again (thank you very much!), feel very confident Azamara would always look after me and assist my onward trip wherever possible.

Phil