Peritoneal Dialysis on MSC

[Sthrncrusr]

Anyone experienced this with MSC in Miami? My folks are considering coming with us on the Seaside and my stepdad is on personal dialysis. I know Baxter delivers to other cruise lines but so far I'm not sure MSC has given me the answers we need to feel secure that all boxes of solution, supplies, etc will make it on board and to their cabin. It's an 8 day cruise and thus way too much in medical supplies to lug. Could you please share your experience?Would it be wiser to go directly through Baxter? We are contacting them anyways to see if they've delivered to MSC in Miami before and what not. 

[OceanCruise]

We have only dealt with Baxter delivering supplies to Celebrity in Florida but hopefully some of this info will be of help. One cruise it took 3 hours for the ship to find the boxes that were delivered at 8 am yet on another cruise the boxes were already waiting in the room as soon as we got there. Get to ship as early as possible and notify check-in person you are having medical supplies delivered to ship and ask to check your stateroom right away when you board. You should contact Baxter several months in advance. Baxter will only deliver the solution and they charge several hundred dollars to do this. You will have to bring everything else in carry-on luggage---all cartridges, gloves, disinfectants, etc. He will also need to bring drain bags ( as the toilet systems are different and would overflow) and then manually drain the bags in the toilet when done and periodically flush which takes awhile and is awkward. We were instructed by ship that all drain waste must go in the toilet. If he uses a cycler machine you will need to order a couple of extra boxes plus manual boxes in case there is any issue with power or the machine. It ends up being a lot of boxes and supplies so we get a suite for the extra room. Baxter will not take back any unused boxes so we ask the room steward/butler to dispose of them at the end of the cruise. Be sure to fill out a special needs form for the cruiseline to request an extension cord, bathroom scale, deep cleaning of room, etc. When we first meet the room steward we ask him to remove all decorative throw pillows, provide new bed pillows and ask that engineering change the air conditioning filter. We bring 2 along boxes of the disposable kleenex brand paper bathroom towels for the handwashing routine and enough kitchen garbage bags to place daily wrappings, used gloves, etc. Amazon sells healthcare grade clorox wipes with bleach in travel size packets. Usually there is a vanity or desk the cycler machine can go on in the stateroom. If you are staying in a hotel before the cruise, call a week or two ahead ahead and ask for an actual contact person you can email regarding disability concerns. Email that person and request disability needs for a deep clean of room,  bathroom scale, no throw pillows, air filter change, etc. For hotels we ask for a flat top wheeled room service cart to remain in the room to place the machine on (this works great), plus an extension cord just in case. This has worked out extremely well for us. Consider bringing a plastic urinal for him just in case the toilet is too far from the bed and machine cord. Have his doctor provide a short medical summary and list of medications to bring along just in case. Make sure he brings along emergency antibiotics for peritonitis if he has a prescription for them because they are not part of the daily medication routine and can easily be forgotten. Let me know if you have other questions. It is very doable but it does take a lot of planning. If you are flying, that is a whole other set of problems.

[Sthrncrusr]

Thank you all so much for the information. I’m taking notes to pass along! So appreciate it.

[OceanCruise]

Happy to help answer any questions as we have learned a lot by trial and error when traveling. The biggest issue is planning ahead and scheduling activities around the dialysis routine in terms of timing for early shore excursions or breakfast in the restaurant, particularly if you want to attend entertainment the night before. I posted the info below on another thread regarding carrying on the equipment and supplies:

 

For the machine we use a medium size flexible plastic hard-sided piece of luggage on wheels (Atlantic Brand Odyssey Collection 24") and place a luggage strap around the outside of the case. We pack the cycler with bubble wrap around it along with as many supplies we can fit in it snugly. On the handle we attach  laminated tags we made that say Medical Device-Fragile. The company who makes your machine may also sell a travel case meant for the device so you should check for that. If their case doesn't have wheels you will need something to wheel it as it would be too heavy to carry around. For a cruise you will need a second carry on (probably 24") for the rest of the supplies. Make sure you measure the inside of the luggage carefully and ensure it will also accomodate the height of the machine with the internal extending handle mechanism. We bring these as carry ons and they fit through the security scanner. One of us gets dropped off and waits outside the terminal with the luggage while the other parks the car.