Most cruise ships these days have a medical team on board. Evidently this was not the case on the cruise ship Braemer, as it was sailing 12 miles south of Shoreham, West Sussex, on its way to Dover, Kent. It is not unusual for a passenger to be air lifted off of a ship to a land hospital, as recently reported by a North Carolina local news web site, WVEC.com. (This is a very good reason to buy travelers insurance when booking a cruise, because a helicopter lift to land is quite expensive).
However this time the doctor was air lifted to the ship when a passenger was suffering chest pains, as reported in Shipping Times.
Just before midnight last night Solent Coastguard received a radio call from the cruise ship BRAEMAR, which was 12 miles south of Shoreham on passage to Dover, reporting a male passenger who had been receiving extensive treatment for a chest pains for the previous 2 hours.
Fortunately the patient’s condition has improved.
Looking for more information? Check out the following article from the CLIA (Cruise Lines International Association), web site Medical Facilities Guidelines
The International Council of Cruise Lines (ICCL) is a non-profit industry trade association consisting of the 16 largest passenger cruise lines that call on major ports in the United States and abroad. The ICCL is dedicated to helping the cruise industry provide a safe, healthy, secure and caring ship environment for both passengers and crew. Among those services that illustrate this commitment to passenger welfare are the shipboard medical infirmaries found on all ICCL member vessels.
One concern is that the web site hasn’t been updated since January of 2002 – surely there have been some changes since then. Being in the medical field myself, I know that we are always updating policies and procedures to keep up with the constant changes in technology. I hope that CLIA is also keeping up with these changes because I really do love taking cruises and would hate to think everything on my next cruise wasn’t ship shape!