Doctor On Board Introduction

Excerpt from Doctor On Board. Page reference numbers point to more in-depth treatment and self-reliant care available within the book.

So, you are the Doctor on Board!

Obviously, open ocean and even coastal sailing requires forethought regarding food, water supplies, navigation, and communication— all areas of significant technical preparation that require obtaining skill sets and supplies. Self-reliant medical care is no exception. Even advanced first aid classes, such as Wilderness First Responder and Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC), all rely eventually on evacuation as part of the treatment protocol. Under the situation of impractical or impossible evacuation, a means of providing a plan for long-term management must be available.

This book provides the basis of prevention, identification, and long-term management of survivable medical conditions and can be performed with minimal training. It helps you identify sources of materials you will need and should stock, it discusses storage issues, and it directs you to sources for more complex procedures that require advanced concepts of field-expedient techniques that could be of use to trained medical persons such as surgeons, anesthesiologist, dentists, or midwives.

While at sea, you should be able to directly handle many of the medical issues you and your crew might experience, from prevention to treatment of most injuries, motion sickness, and environmental exposure. More complex situations may require your issuing a distress call for advice or help. For these to be properly managed you will need to have appropriate communication and signaling skills and to be able to appropriate request “Pan Pan” or “Mayday” assistance. And just as important, to know when to initiate this help. Knowledge of appropriate communication and signaling technologies are required for any ship’s master certification and the responsibility of both owner and master. The Navigation Rules & Regulations Handbook by the Department of Homeland Security, United States Coast Guard (USCG), published rules for navigation as well as communications. A copy of this booklet can be obtained from Paradise Cay Publications at www. paracay.com

Upon establishing the need for help, a report must be made that is coherent and precise to the rescuing party. Ship’s name, location, number of souls aboard, and other pertinent information for identification and the degree of risk to ship or patient need to be explained. Historically “Pan, Pan” was the expression requesting help for an individual while “Mayday, Mayday” indicated an entire crew and ship are at risk and require assistance.

The International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005) is the key international health document that is legally binding across 196 countries, including all World Health Organization (WHO) member states. This includes provisions for the use of various health documents that must be presented, if requested, to health authorities on arrival at ports. These include the International Certificate of Vaccination and Prophylaxis and depending upon circumstances the Maritime Declaration of Health. You should download A Boaters Guide to the Federal Requirements for Recreational Boats and Safety Tips by the Department of Homeland Security. This document describes various communications devices and signal requirements and availability.

The Master should have a medical record of every crew member. Each crew member going on an international trip should carry the International Immunization Certificate as well as their passport, upon arrival at international ports. An example of personal medical forms and medical incident reports can be found at www.doctor-onboard.com/documentation