What are the ships doctors capable of handing?

[2preschoolers]

Just curious what the ships doctors are able to handle, in terms of emergencies? Are they equipped mostly to handle things like ear infections/stomach bugs, etc. Or more serious issues like broken bone or heart problems, etc? ((We don't have any issues that we know of I'm just curious to find out what they can handle incase something happens on board!)

THANKS!

[trish1c]

They can handle most minor things -- for a real medical emergency you will be sailed to port or airlifted off the ship at your expense.

[megr1125]

supposedly they have had emergency medicine and/or family medicine training...

 

they can handle most emergencies, but if it was something really serious they'd probably stabilizez you and then get you off the ship somehow.

 

We've had 2 experiences though, both on the same ship. Once last year my mom fell. They misdiagnosed her broken foot saying it was a sprain.

 

The second was in December....something she ate made her sick.....they gave her some meds, we spent a few hours in the medical facility and we were all set.

 

they can run many tests, have an array of meds, can do x-rays, etc.

 

they do treat the crew, so they're capable of many things; however, i would hope that there isn't a need for this again! it is NOT cheap, gets charged to your on board account, and in most cases is not covered by meidcal insurance nor medicare.

 

thus, get travel insurance!

[Arwenmark]

Almost all of the newer ships that sail now have at least ONE operating room and they can handle quite a bit if need be but their job is to stablize a patient till the ship reaches a port.

Most of them have online connection to major hospitals with video and ability to operate under another specialists supervision if need be, as well as transfering information/data on the patient to the mainland.

[josask]

18 months ago, my FIL suffered a massive heart attack aboard a ship in the Mediterranean. Fortunately, he was seated at a table next to a ship nurse who revived him. He was taken to the ship's medical centre where he suffered a second attack. The doctor was able to use paddles to revive him again. At that point, they decided to put him into a drug induced coma while they awaited transportation off the ship. A day and a half later, he was air ambulanced to a hospital in Athens.

 

If it hadn't been for the hospital staff, he would not have survived. He had a triple bypass and valve replacement in Athens and is doing remarkably well.

[cb at sea]

If you have serious conditions that MIGHT require emergency care, or acute care, a cruise ship isn't the place to be when that happens.

Of course, things happen to what seem to be healthy folks, and the ship's doctor will do his/her best, but a ship isn't the best place for major things!

 

Cuts, bruises, sprains,tummy-aches, allergic reactions (minor), etc....are generally well-treated.

[chipmaster]

Just curious what the ships doctors are able to handle, in terms of emergencies? Are they equipped mostly to handle things like ear infections/stomach bugs, etc. Or more serious issues like broken bone or heart problems, etc? ((We don't have any issues that we know of I'm just curious to find out what they can handle incase something happens on board!)

THANKS!

 

 

If you have a specific health concern I'd consult your doctor and ask the cruise line.

 

My belief is that you'd probably have the level of service/training of a doctor at any one of those many private walk-in emergancy clinics; cuts, bruises, broken bones, infection and anything your family doctor could treat with a office visit and a trip to the drug store is okay, anything else forget it.

 

My only personal experience was 10 years ago on a Princess ship when my wife was pregnant and had an eye infection. Judging by what I saw and his recommendations, I'd not want to be seriously ill and going on cruise.

[Padraic]

Just curious what the ships doctors are able to handle, in terms of emergencies? Are they equipped mostly to handle things like ear infections/stomach bugs, etc. Or more serious issues like broken bone or heart problems, etc? ((We don't have any issues that we know of I'm just curious to find out what they can handle incase something happens on board!)

 

On our last three cruises (HAL) the doctors were ER doctors in their non-cruise life. Had dinner with the doctor on our last and he - an ER doctor in California - said that 'most' of the cruise ship doctors were ER doctors.

[notentirelynormal]

My mother had her usual double pneumonia, broncitis and plurisee (spelled it wrong) and spent 5 days in the on board hospital. She was treated very well and thought the care she got was excellent. Didn't enjoy the cruise much, but at least she was very well looked after.

[grand isle joe]

On our last three cruises (HAL) the doctors were ER doctors in their non-cruise life. Had dinner with the doctor on our last and he - an ER doctor in California - said that 'most' of the cruise ship doctors were ER doctors.

 

Yes we were on an RCCL cruise and met the ships' doctor and he was winding down his practice in Ohio. He and his wife were as nice as most Heartland citizens and very well trained in E.R. medicine.

[2preschoolers]

18 months ago, my FIL suffered a massive heart attack aboard a ship in the Mediterranean. Fortunately, he was seated at a table next to a ship nurse who revived him. He was taken to the ship's medical centre where he suffered a second attack. The doctor was able to use paddles to revive him again. At that point, they decided to put him into a drug induced coma while they awaited transportation off the ship. A day and a half later, he was air ambulanced to a hospital in Athens.

 

If it hadn't been for the hospital staff, he would not have survived. He had a triple bypass and valve replacement in Athens and is doing remarkably well.

 

WOW - what a story! I'm so glad to hear that he is doing well!

 

On our last three cruises (HAL) the doctors were ER doctors in their non-cruise life. Had dinner with the doctor on our last and he - an ER doctor in California - said that 'most' of the cruise ship doctors were ER doctors.

 

Good to know! Thanks!

[sun~]

As many posters have mentioned, the medical care on a cruise ship is intended for emergencies or cuts & bruises. No one should rely on the medical facilities on board for anything other than those things. Hence why they will only accept pregnant women to X number of weeks along etc.

 

My mother in law broke her hip on her last day of a 35 day cruise to the south pacific. She tripped on rug that stopped at a marble floor on her way to pick up photos.

 

The medical staff got her comfortable and organized her airlift from San Diego to Victoria. Good thing her insurance covered the airlift (I think it was $27,000). She was very impressed at the professionalism of the staff, particularly one of the nurses who really took charge. She is a retired RN (from the Royal Jubilee - where she wound up from the airlift) and had nothing but good things to say about the medical staff on the Statendam.

 

If they had been a few days away from port, she may have had a different story. She needed surgery within a few hours of the break. There is no way on earth that would have happened on a ship.

[Waynetor]

One thing ship doctors can't do is give anaestetic. If you need that you would likely be air lifted or taken to a port.

Wayne S.

[cruiserbryce]

they were able to handle the cut in the top of my head just fine...I am 6'7" and hit my head while running upstairs (I know I am an idiot)...

[flamomo]

On a cruise a few years ago, I had occasion to visit the ship's medical center for an injury sustained on a tour. Being a retired RN, I chatted up the nurses and the Doc, and learned that in order to work on a cruiseship, they are required have the same certifications that are mandatory for doctors and nurses to work in ERs and ICUs. They also have the same medical equipment as is used in ERs and ICUs.

Even though my injury was a relatively minor one, I felt I received very professional and appropriate care. I hope to never have a serious condition occur while on a cruise, but I am comfortable that if that were to occur, the medical staff aboard are prepared to handle it, and make the appropriate choices about what is best for my situation.

[tiffstulips]

Last Feb my husband broke his wrist while body surfing in St. Martin.(2nd port) We were on the RCI Serenade. I work for othopaedic surgeons at home so I knew it was broke as soon as it happened. The locals on the beach told us to go to the ship med center. Later on the ship most staff told us we should have gone to the hospital in port. It all worked out fine but, we returned to the ship at 11am with his wrist packed in ice from the beach bar we found out the med center hours were from 7-10am and 4-7pm.

We got him a big cigar and a stiff drink and left him in the shade poolside for the afternoon. We went to the med center whne it opened and had to wait inline about an hour. When he was seen they did an xray and put it in a temporary cast. They wanted to sell us 800mg ibprofen at $2.00 per pill. We waited till the next day and I bought them in Antigua for $8.00 for 30 pills. The total onboard cost was just over $500 (to be paid when we settled our account). We did see the ship dr that treated him several times around the ship and in port throughout the week. He was from Romania. He was very nice and concerned. When we returned home the wrist was set and casted for a total of 12 weeks. We sail again in 4 weeks. DH is on probabtion! It all worked out fine in the end. :)

[chloemonkey]

Just curious what the ships doctors are able to handle, in terms of emergencies? Are they equipped mostly to handle things like ear infections/stomach bugs, etc. Or more serious issues like broken bone or heart problems, etc? ((We don't have any issues that we know of I'm just curious to find out what they can handle incase something happens on board!)

THANKS!

We had a run of "bad" luck with another couple that we always cruised with a few years back. First time, we were paged and told to report to the Medical Facility as our friend was there and truly ill. When we got there, they told us that our friend was suffering from an obstructed bowel and that he needed emergency surgery. We were to dock in Puerto Vallarta the next morning and he was transported by ambulance to a hospital in the old section of town. Funny thing is - in the meantime, my husband (who is a VETERINARIAN!) sort of "nabbed" a stethoscope from the hospital room onboard the ship during the evenng and listened for bowel signs....He started laughing and told our friend that he did NOT have an obstructed bowel and not to worry about needing surgery. My husband also accompanied our friend via the ambulance, to the hospital. I went with the wife to do ENDLESS amounts of paperwork at the dock in Puerto Vallarta while the transport was taking place.

 

When the ambulance arrived at the hospital, my husband told the admittiing physician that he thought that the problem may very well be pancreatitis and to NOT go by the ship's doctors orders stating that the patient was suffering from an obstructed bowel. The good news was that my husband also speaks fluent spanish and so was able to communicate with the doctor in Puerto Vallarta quite well. The doctor agreed to run specific blood tests to check on our friend's blood sugar levels and guess what? My husband was totally correct in the diagnosis! Our friend and his wife had to remain there in Puerto Vallart for 3 days at which point his condition allowed him to fly home unassisted.

 

Then, the very next year, we were trying to "finish" our 10 day cruise to Mexico when the WIFE became ill! She began to bleed heavily (she had had a procedure done two weeks before the cruise" and so when we arrived in Acapulco, we went directly to a lab and my husband had them do blood work on her to see what her status was. As the day progressed, she became more and more pale, weak, etc. so when the labs were ready, we picked them up and went directly back to the ship in order to alert the ship's doctor to the situation. OH! And the reason that we did not first seek the help of the onboard doctor was because they are not on duty while in port......

 

Anyway, the ship's doctor readily agreed with the labs that we had on this gal and insisted that she be admitted to a hospital right away. This meant the SECOND time in less than 9 months that we were continuing our cruise without our travel mates! And although she needed a couple of blood transfusions, she too was able to fly home with her husband two days later. And despite later worries as to HIV testing on the transfusions that she had received, all worked out just fine!

 

Bottom line.....the ship's doctor in the first situation TOTALLY blew the diagnosis and our friend would have possibly had to have major bowel surgery were it not for the fact that my husband was able to communicate to the doctor in Mexico that he needed to RETEST everything as he was not in agreement with what the ship's doctor had diagnosed. Yet the second incident, the ship's doctor was "right on" and prescribed the correct methog of treatment which was to put her off of the ship in order to receive blood transfusions.

 

Sort of common sense....there are good doctors and there are the "other" ones - even in the United States! Although our friends are still eternally grateful and insist that they will never travel without their "VETERINARIAN" again! They do feel that he was influential in both of them having a good outcome.

[cruisinreunion]

my young daughter (10 years old) suffers from chronic daily migraines. She has been hospitalized several times but for the most part does a good job just dealing with the pain. On occaision she does need IV pain medications such as morphine or dilodid, along with compazine for the nausea, to help her deal with the severity of the headaches. Does anyone know if the ships doctor will be able to administer IV pain meds if she desperately needs them?

We are leaving in April and I know that there will be lots of kids onboard, therefore lots of noise and I expect some major headaches will affect her...but you can't live your life in a bubble:)

[room010]

Why on earth would a cruise company not employ a properly qualified doctor to look after hundreds, possibly thousands of passengers? Sure, there are stories of "incompetant" ships' doctors but I can assure you there are plenty of those ashore too, even in the US :eek: Having said that, if you are unfortunate enough to have a chronic, serious and potentially life threatening condition that could require a high level of specialist/ICU care at any given moment then perhaps a cruise isn't the wisest choice of vacation in the first place.

[njhorseman]

my young daughter (10 years old) suffers from chronic daily migraines. She has been hospitalized several times but for the most part does a good job just dealing with the pain. On occaision she does need IV pain medications such as morphine or dilodid, along with compazine for the nausea, to help her deal with the severity of the headaches. Does anyone know if the ships doctor will be able to administer IV pain meds if she desperately needs them?

We are leaving in April and I know that there will be lots of kids onboard, therefore lots of noise and I expect some major headaches will affect her...but you can't live your life in a bubble:)

 

 

If she were my daughter, I would not take her on a cruise, based on your statement that you expect major headaches will affect her, and she might need IV narcotics to deal with them. You can't live in a bubble, but you have to realize that the ship's doctor is not your family physician nor is the facility a hospital ER. If you tell the ship's doctor she needs a narcotic like morphine, they may very well order you off the ship in the next port. This is a chronic medical condition that you are fully aware of, not an emergency that arose out of the blue.

[mdvlprof]

Even the best drs at the best hospitals sometimes can take a while to diagnose. (Can anyone say House?) Drs on board shouldn't be held to higher standards. ER drs are generalists, not specialists in all fields.

[toberman]

Just curious what the ships doctors are able to handle, in terms of emergencies? Are they equipped mostly to handle things like ear infections/stomach bugs, etc. Or more serious issues like broken bone or heart problems, etc? ((We don't have any issues that we know of I'm just curious to find out what they can handle incase something happens on board!)

THANKS!

 

Check out this thread:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1126627

 

You'll see that the doctors on board the Coral Princess were very capable in a life threatening emergency.

 

Janette

[soozles]

The ship doctors are not there to manage chronic medical conditions, or to sit around making diagnoses. They're there to treat and stabilize, much like an ER on land. When you go to an ER on land with a stroke, they are treating the stroke, the acute issue, to them why you had the stroke is not as important, that's for the other's on the medical team to figure out after the person has been stabilized. They need to be able to recognize the problem and decide if it's something serious or not.

 

If you have a chronic condition, chances are they are not going to feel very comfortable treating it. For the person asking about her kid with chronic daily migraines, a cruise may not be the best vacation for you yet, until you get her migraines under control. Not many doctors are comfortable giving narcotics to kids. Not saying that they won't, but narcotics are incredibly strong and you don't want a kid to get dependent on that. Especially for a doctor on a cruise ship, who doesn't know the child's history, doesn't know if the kid has any other issues, and no easy way to call the child's doctor could make for a hairy situation. I would call the cruise line, maybe the special assistance number and see what they can and cannot do with regards to a chronic situation like the one described.

[celle]

my young daughter (10 years old) suffers from chronic daily migraines. She has been hospitalized several times but for the most part does a good job just dealing with the pain. On occaision she does need IV pain medications such as morphine or dilodid, along with compazine for the nausea, to help her deal with the severity of the headaches. Does anyone know if the ships doctor will be able to administer IV pain meds if she desperately needs them?

We are leaving in April and I know that there will be lots of kids onboard, therefore lots of noise and I expect some major headaches will affect her...but you can't live your life in a bubble:)

 

As an RN and a pediatric nurse of many years, I have to say that I am concerned for your daughter.

 

I'm sure that you and the medical team treating her all want the best outcome for her, but I have to say that it is most unusual for a child so young to need IV narcotics and also to have migraines on an almost-daily basis. I would not be at all happy about that and I would be pushing for some answers as to WHY she gets such severe pain and so frequently.

 

As others have said, on-board medical facilities are more than adequate to deal with emergency issues, to stabilize the patient and to recommend evacuation and further treatment on land, if necessary.

 

While any ship's doctor is "able" to administer IV narcotics, I do not think that you will find any who is willing to give your DD any IV narcotics on your "say-so".

 

If you do decide to take your DD on a cruise, you should carry a letter signed by the specialist who is currently treating your daughter. This letter should state your daughter's medical problem (migraine) its severity, the medication she usually takes, and the occasional need for IV narcotics (type and dosage to be stated).

 

Make sure you have an ample supply of your DD's usual medications. the ship's hospital will not have a supply of specialized pediatric medications.

 

I hope it all works out for you and you all have a great cruise.

[cruisinreunion]

thank you all for your responses to my inquiry of IV meds for my DD.I will be asking the doctor for a letter, thanks for the idea, but we are actively pursuing diagnosis, etc. She has undergone several MRI"s, lumbar punctures, tried several meds, even brought her to a psychologist who ruled they were real headaches and not stress related, etc. We are also, through the advise of her pediatric neurologist, seeing an accupuncturist and so far this has helped the most of all, including being better than the narcotics. We have also chosen to have her live as normal as a life as possible (so that she wins and the headache loses) and this includes cruising with the family. But if a severe headache hits and doesn't go away (she lives with a 4-5 on a pain scale, and we are talking 9-10 in pain) I will have no choice than to seek medical treatment, although hoping for the best. I did read that some ships may have an accupuncturist in the spa area, is this true on all ships? We will be on the NCL dawn in April.

 

Thanks for your concerns and advise