Medical facilities on new ships

[cruiser man 60]

Anyone advise what the medical facilities are like on the new ships.Whats the position on a long cruise with a lot of sea days such as transatlantic if someone is taking seriously ill? Do the ships have facilities to cope, would you have to wait several days for medical treatment in a hospital given the distance to nearest port ?

[Hlitner]

10 hours ago, cruiser man 60 said:

Anyone advise what the medical facilities are like on the new ships.Whats the position on a long cruise with a lot of sea days such as transatlantic if someone is taking seriously ill? Do the ships have facilities to cope, would you have to wait several days for medical treatment in a hospital given the distance to nearest port ?

All cruise ships have a medical center and must carry at least 1 physician.  The physicians come from various countries and just about every line now avoids hiring American/Canadian physicians for various reasons.  So, for example, when DW was injured in Vietnam, she was treated aboard the Golden Princess by their physician who was from South Africa.   Medical facilities vary between cruise lines and the size of ships but are generally equipped (and staffed) to handle most emergencies.  But their facilities (and staff) are very limited which often means they do their best to stabilize serious problems until they can get the patient to a port.  If you are days from the nearest port (this happens if you cross the Pacific or in some other Oceans) they do their best onboard.  The reality is that if you have a very serious medical problem you might be in big trouble!  There is another post on CC about a lady who suffered a serious hemorrhagic stroke (only a few hours after leaving a Florida port) and is now suing the cruise line claiming they did not do enough to get her to a hospital.

 

You might also consider that air evacuation from a cruise ship is only possible if the ship is within range (a few hundred miles) of a qualified helicopter and the weather is within certain parameters.   Over the years we have witnessed 3 helicopter evacuations off of cruise ships.  As a rule this is only done by highly trained Coast Guard personnel or possibly the military.

 

In a related matter, cruise ships also have morgues (we have seen one).  For those with serious medical problems it is probably wise to consult your own physician to get advice on whether taking a cruise is a good idea.

 

Hank

[G.M.T.]

All ships have complete uptodate medical chests and instruments:

 

 

 

[cparker01]

That’s funny!

[cparker01]

On 4/13/2019 at 4:44 AM, cruiser man 60 said:

Anyone advise what the medical facilities are like on the new ships.Whats the position on a long cruise with a lot of sea days such as transatlantic if someone is taking seriously ill? Do the ships have facilities to cope, would you have to wait several days for medical treatment in a hospital given the distance to nearest port ?

We were on Seaside last yr and my husband got pretty sick, high fever,  chills etc... He had to go to the medical station twice. He spent about two hours each time giving him a drip of antibiotics. He came back feeling quite a bit better but within a couple of days he was back in the same condition so we went back and repeated treatment. Doctor was Italian and nurse was from some other county. Felt like a doctors office versus a hospital. Our insurance reimbursed the $800

we were charged and did have to pay it before we got of the ship. I would recommend travel insurance that covers life flight and other pertinent charges that would help in a bad situation.

[April42749]

I was on NCL Escape and discovered "a growth".  Being a cancer survivor I was concerned.  The doctor said it wasn't cancer but that the large inflamed cyst that I had developed was a recurring sexually transmitted disease (been with only my husband for 35 years).  The doctor drained it over a course of 6 visits and $3500 to the medical facility (I had insurance).  His bedside manner was so bad that I almost broke into tears.

Came home and immediately saw my gyn.  Although it was treated corrected, it was misdiagnosed (a simple google search would have clearly shown that it wasn't what he said it was....it was in the wrong place).

So...yeah....there are doctors, but their training is in Emergency Medicine.   On the bright side, the doctor is right there and just an elevator ride away.  And, I was impressed by their facilities.

[LakeWobegon]

I had an ear infection and my ears popped on the airplane landing before we boarded Seaside. It was terrible pain and I couldn't hear. Went to the medical center and at first I was a little alarmed at how basic the course of treatment was but then realized it was just a language barrier. The doctor and nurse kept telling me I would be fine and have a great vacation. Ha! How do you know I thought? They cleaned my ears with peroxide and then gave me strong oral and ear drop antibiotics and all was good. Last year, on Carnival we discovered my son had a severe shellfish allergy. That was serious. But a shot and plenty of benedryl later, and all was good. I was thoroughly impressed with their medical staff. And yes, we always get insurance, mainly for the possibility of needing to be airlifted off the ship.