Managing Medical Emergencies at Sea: Risks and Responses

18th of June 2018

Managing Medical Emergencies at Sea: Risks and Responses

Article related to the NIVA course on Managing Medical Emergencies at Sea, 30th of October – 1st of November 2018, Hotel Marienlyst, Helsingør (Elsinore), Denmark

Dr Suzanne Stannard, Medical adviser, Norwegian Centre for Maritime Medicine, Haukeland universitetssjukehus

Maritime emergencies of all types and magnitude occur on a regular basis. From ship wrecks to piracy, from fire to a medical emergency, there are many situations that can arise on board that pose a risk to the seafarer, the ship itself, the ship owner and insurance company and the environment. The first six months of 2017 saw a total of 87 piracy incidents reported to the IMB Piracy Reporting Centre. A total of 63 crewmembers have been taken hostage so far this year whilst 41 have been kidnapped from their vessels, three injured and two killed. In the same period there were a total of 70 incidents of ship wreck, floundering, grounding and collision. However figures for the annual number of calls made from ships to the Norwegian authorities show that the need for medical assistance is by far the most common reason that ships need external help and support. In 2014, 2379 calls out of a total of 6056 were for medical assistance. This may be for single or multiple casualties, for injury or illness, for passengers or crew. The volume of calls to Telemedical Assistance Services (TMAS) remain constant with a significant proportion requiring medical evacuation.

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