Ships hospital - Warning?

[Pee0305]

It certainly was a relief Skioncruises. It didnt happen on the TA though, it was on Pride of Panama/Cuban Fusion. I hope that your crossing goes well next April, for us though it's put us off cruising for a while :( If/when we look for another cruise in the future it wont be with Thomson. Sad as we have enjoyed all other cruises with them. This one was such a poor experience for us and we just feel that generally standards are declining and for the same money we could find better.

 

Thank you for your good wishes ;)

[skioncruises]

It certainly was a relief Skioncruises. It didnt happen on the TA though, it was on Pride of Panama/Cuban Fusion. I hope that your crossing goes well next April, for us though it's put us off cruising for a while :( If/when we look for another cruise in the future it wont be with Thomson. Sad as we have enjoyed all other cruises with them. This one was such a poor experience for us and we just feel that generally standards are declining and for the same money we could find better.

 

Thank you for your good wishes

 

Hi Pee0305

 

We've been cruising with Thomson since 1989 with a couple of defections to Airtours and Ocean Village 1 & 2. However, the way Thomson Cruises are going, I think next year may be our last, but they do do itineraries that appeal to us. We stick with them mainly because it is more than a 1,000 mile round trip from home to Southampton involving two overnight stays plus rail travel (to allow for baggage allowance).

 

Good luck with any future cruising you do.:)

[WeeCountyMan]

Quite true. By nature all cruise ships are profit driven. From the moment you board they are trying to sell you something - from drinks packages, to photo packages, spa treatments, restaurants etc.

 

I would not like to guess how much the ships doctor is getting paid - rather more than the cabin stewards no doubt lol and they are definitely NOT going to rely on tips....

 

With respect, there can't be too many cabin stewards who have to complete a degree level university course over six (my guess) years before they are allowed to start earning a living in their line of work ?

 

When you go sick on a cruise you are in effect taking treatment in private healthcare - and the costs quoted on this thread reflect that.

 

Travel insurance claims staff are specialists in this field and if they think there has been overcharging it will be investigated.

Edited February 22, 2015 by WeeCountyMan

[geomagot]

With respect, there can't be too many cabin stewards who have to complete a degree level university course over six (my guess) years before they are allowed to start earning a living in their line of work ?

 

When you go sick on a cruise you are in effect taking treatment in private healthcare - and the costs quoted on this thread reflect that.

 

Travel insurance claims staff are specialists in this field and if they think there has been overcharging it will be investigated.

 

yes I’m with you wcm

 

newly qualified doctors will typically spend some considerable time as underpaid juniors until they reach their full earning potential

 

also....we dont know what the ships doctors' speciality is? like most gp's they cannot be expert in everything? whereas the nhs will have access to referrals and in house expert opinion (and access to patients medical notes) non of which a ships doctor would have the benefit of, they are working blind , on the day and on the hoof, their main aim is to get someone up and running (and fit to fly) in the least amount of time possible? that wont come cheap and that is not the main consideration on the nhs who can and will follow the cheaper options

[WeeCountyMan]

Geomagot,

 

We Brits are used to "free" medical treatment at the point of delivery in the UK and therefore having to pay for it like any other commodity at the going market rate is a sobering experience which tends to concentrate the mind.

 

You are right of course, a ship's medic is basically an onboard GP with limited equipment etc.

 

On a cruise ship the tab is running the minute you walk into the medical suite seeking care.

[geomagot]

yes, i absolutely agree wcm

 

its unfair to accuse any doctor of running a scam? doctors dont train for years, invest their own cash and effort in their educations and work long hours to put all that work and effort at risk right at the point that they have reached their full earning potential?

 

yes, as brits we are not used to having drips/tubes/nebulisers/tests for everything etc etc... we are more used to being sent home with a box of aspirin (imo cheap aspirin is a fix for virtually everything on the nhs....depending on postcode) and told to come back at some unspecified time in the future (if you can get an appointment?)

 

£1500 is not imo a huge sum in the realms of private medical practice (some people will have to pay that to get their teeth fixed here at home)

 

like any business private doctors are in the business of making a living (ie they are not earning a regular wage from the nhs) imo private doctors are not trying to/cannot run scams with peoples health, insurance companies have set prices that they are prepared to pay out

 

a ships doctor could easily medivac a patient (to miami or somewhere? at a cost of 100's of thousands…if you eat a sandwich atthat hospital in Miami you will be charged for that too)

 

I believe ships doctors really do have your best interests at heart in trying to get you fit as quickly as possible with the least inconvenience so that you can continue with your holiday....they may well run unnecessary tests or hit you with things that you may not want to hear and yes.... that can be a bit scary, but they need to cover as many options as they can, not all of them are qualified in all the fields, all that might cost a fair bit? but most people will be insured

[CRUISIN LINDA]

Well geo you certainly have a rosy view of doctors ;)

 

In my opinion they are the marketing arm of the big drug companies! Any drugs they can get you on, they will - ££££;)

 

But to return to the OP's post, I think she was mostly worried about the doctor telling her she had probably had a heart attack when subsequent tests proved otherwise. Also as Kruzseeka says it is very odd that two other people should have been charged exactly the same amount. I'm sure there are some nice honest doctors out there, but equally there are some that are not. you only have to look at America, where people have to pay for treatment to see a lot of unnecessary treatment and operations.

[balf]

So with the medical charges experienced by blossom, wales4ever and skioncruises (on Destiny in 2011) the charges of £1500 do seem way out of line. With tales of almost identical treatments/diagnoses/costs I must say the current reports from Dream do seem odd. I'd be the first to say that you should take no risks with your health and a Dr should err on the side of caution (and you can't put a price on being properly looked after if you are ill) but there is a serious underlying concern in my mind having read this.

 

The current price for a consultation (Adonia January) is £52. You really shouldn't expect a similar amount for follow ups though it looks like that was not so in this case. Then there is medication and nurse fees. There must be a big temptation to bump up fees when they know the insurers are picking up the tab.

 

David.

[WeeCountyMan]

There must be a big temptation to bump up fees when they know the insurers are picking up the tab.

 

Correct, that's how the system works.

[davecttr]

Correct, that's how the system works.

 

Yep, all the cruise lines charge the earth