Princess Cruises?

[Emtp2010stl]

So how is it with cell phone on board? How do you communicate with family? Did you switch cell plans?

I jumped on the Golden Princess Nov 27th. She's currently doing the endless loop of Hawai'i: leaving LA, stopping by Hilo, Honolulu, Lihue, Lahaina, Ensanada, then back to LA. Your demographics are primarily USA with a mix of UK and Canada filling up 95% of the people. Every cruise is different. My first had a gastroenteritis outbreak, then next few where a constant battle with Influenza A. It is a six bed ER complete with Xray, minor surgical, and lab capabilities. Currently, people tend to give us a major medical issue the first or second day at sea. I think we've had about two MIs, a host of random infections, a few idiopathic seizures (and they always happen while they're either standing by or in the pool), and a seizure that turned out to be having an MI.

You swap your rig, MRX, airway and RX bags out for a 12kg FR bag and a wheelchair. You’ll get to know all the knooks and crannies in the ship, and everybody just calls you ‘doc’. You’re more visible than most of the medical team because of your FR responsibilities. There are bi-monthly ACLS related drills that involve the whole medical team, security, accommodations, and the bridge. Once a cruise there’s the general MICD/fire drill and they take all of it seriously. Since there are only 6-7 seven of us with medical training, the crew become your hands and you do a lot of delegating.

One thing I've noticed, we, as Americans, don't work outside our borders much. The only other Americans you’ll meet on ships are the guest entertainers. And, it makes sense: there's so much of our country to pick from that we don't need to travel. I must admit I was pissed when I ended up on the Hawaii loop, but my next contract is taking me to Europe in the summer.

Now, every ship is different. We’ve had a FB group up to discuss things and some medics have it worse than others. It depends on your medical team and senior physician, depends on the Captain’s standing orders. For example, I can go anywhere I want on the ship because I’m an officer (to eat, socialize, etc.). However, another ship’s standing orders allows only two strip and above to do that. But we’re not consistent either. Our current senior nurse was pleasantly surprised on his first day to find me mixing Ceftriaxone to set up a drip for the doc. Apparently, his last ship had paramedics that were unwilling to expand on their FR responsibilities. But then there are ships where the medics have been moved from room to room as the system hasn’t adjusted to having two of us (since we replace one nurse).

I can’t say about hiring and expansion. It’s a big project to set this all up, and I figure shoreside is busy just keeping pace. I’m sure part of it is the turnover. Its hard to get people to stay when we can just go home and go back to our old jobs without missing a beat.

 

[CruiseMedic]

So how is it with cell phone on board? How do you communicate with family? Did you switch cell plans?

2 ways: Everyone has phones in their rooms, officers have an outside line that you can use crew prepaid phone cards ($10 for about 110 minutes). If you have an unlocked cell phone, you can buy a crew SIM card to use the satellite with prepaid minutes and texts. I don't encourage using own US cell phone plan unless your on a Hawaini or Alaskan route, it's just rack up a $500 bill. If your overseas, buy a Eurpean prepaid SIM card or whatever country your in. Hope this helps!

 

[Emtp2010stl]

Thanks for the info. Is the internet good enough for skype?

2 ways: Everyone has phones in their rooms, officers have an outside line that you can use crew prepaid phone cards ($10 for about 110 minutes). If you have an unlocked cell phone, you can buy a crew SIM card to use the satellite with prepaid minutes and texts. I don't encourage using own US cell phone plan unless your on a Hawaini or Alaskan route, it's just rack up a $500 bill. If your overseas, buy a Eurpean prepaid SIM card or whatever country your in. Hope this helps!

 

[BoonDoc91B]

Applying to Princess Cruises...

Addressing this to the members of this forum that have or are actively working for Princess Cruises.

I'm a paramedic with over eleven years on the street as a medic and twenty-plus overall. Have been looking to take my career in a less traditional direction. I love to travel and am very keen on the idea of getting expanding my scope of practice. That being said, I hate to address cover letters and resumes 'To Whom It May Concern'. I have the corporate address...just looking the name, job title and department of someone that I should address them to.

Thanks again for keeping all of us so well informed and for helping to advance the field of paramedicine by pioneering this new avenue of advancement. Well done gentlemen.

 

[Sea Medic]

Don't sweat not having an actual name to address on your cover letters. There are several individuals that will see it and none of them are offended in the least if their name isn't mentioned on there. The biggest thing is to make sure you send it. You'll have more than enough opportunities to address them by name later.

Good luck.

 

[racingmedic]

how was the hiring process? from Skype interview on?

 

[racingmedic]

have my Skype interview tomorrow

 

[Emtp2010stl]

Yes after the phone interview I went through a Skype interview . Good luck

 

[TacMedic]

When did you submit your actual resume via email? I sent one in November 2012, and Feb 2013...and have heard nothing. ugh

 

[racingmedic]

I sent my resume around april 5th or 6th, got a call that Monday and had my Skype interview last Friday, april 12th....now I am waiting to see if I get a second interview.

 

[Medic722]

Currently a Medic onboard the Star Princess, You should hear something soon if they are interested. I can't imagine more than a week will pass without them expressing interest.

 

[Medic722]

Just adding my input, I use a lot of internet onboard. I purchase a WiFi internet card for $40.00 USD, and It gets me 400 minutes of internet usage. I use the Wifi right in my cabin, on my laptop. It can be a bit slow at times, but you learn when to use it and when not too. I communicate with my family via Facebook, and Skype voice chat mostly. As for phone usage on board I've never really found the need to make calls with Facebook, and Skype available. Hope this helps! All the best.

 

[ExpatMedic0]

Hey guys,
Just an update it appears they are hiring again
http://www.jobtarget.com/c/job.cfm?job=12213804&vnet=0&max=25&site_id=13166

also I thought it was pretty cool they where doing this promotion

http://www.princess.com/cruisingfor...&utm_campaign=retiree+newsletter#.UaTfW0Bnrm4

I am heading back to the middle east, otherwise I would apply myself. Fascinating thread and job though, hope it continues to stay alive. Let us know how you like it out there on the ship(new guys)

 

[TacMedic]

Yes they seem to be accepting again. I submitted a resume in November, 2012; February, 2013; with no response and a third time in May 2013. This time they acknowledged my eamil and resume and directed me to a website for an online application process to include attaching the resume and a cover letter. That was acknowledged on May 12...stating it will be under review and would contact me in the future for an interview. Still waiting.

 

[jaysonsd]

Just got off my long 5 month contract. Had a blast, but pretty tired near the end. If they keep sending me somewhere new, I could do this for quite a while; the big ships really go everywhere except Antarctica.

As for hiring and the process involved now, it looks like they're doing shipboard training of medics alongside new nurses at about 3 at a time. And they're always looking for people; one medic jumped ship after one day, another after a week. I think they realize that now and why they switched to shipboard training.

PM me with questions.

 

[adwooten2]

Well, just put in my application, so we'll see what happens. Cannot wait to hear back!

 

[nailstab28]

Currently a Medic onboard the Star Princess, You should hear something soon if they are interested. I can't imagine more than a week will pass without them expressing interest.

Sir Medic722,

I am a medic applicant for Princess Cruise. Im from the philippines. The recruiter told me that Star Princess has an opening for paramedic..Im just waiting for the approval of the principal..I want to ask for some info..How is it going there?Do you a 1 and a half stripe? Can you tell me some medic job details there in Star Princess? How long is the duration of your contract? Thank you very much sir.

Sir Jaysonsd,

Hi! How are you sir? Im new here. I just want to hear some advice from you. Im a filipino and I applied for medic position here in the phililippines. The recruiter told me PCL has medic vacancies for Star Princess. I passed all the interviews and exams. I am now waiting for the principal's approval. Will they conduct any skype interviews? I am a nurse, does it make me qualified for a paramedic position?I am hoping for your response sir. Thank you!

Hey guys and girls. I think I may be able to shed some light and hopefully answer some questions. I am on a Princess Cruise Line Ship currently as a medic and am quickly nearing the end of my first contract.

Currently, only the bigger class of ships have medics deployed. The medical team on these ships is usually 2 doctors, 3 nurses, and 2 medics. The nurses have been difficult to staff fully due to a number of reasons that are not easily resolved. You work both a morning clinic (usually 8:30 to 10:30) and an afternoon clinic (usually 4:30 to 6:30). If you are not on call for the day the rest of the time is yours. If the ship is in port, enjoy the sights. If the ship is at sea, enjoy whatever entertainment, or workout, or resting, or whatever activities you want to do. If you are on call, you are restricted to the ship but that is it. Do what you want as long as you are on board. The nurses and doctors try very hard to make sure that you get to see as many ports as possible and you are always welcome to split your on call day with the other medic.

The uniform consists of scrubs that are provided. Depending on the ship and the captain, many of them do not require you to change into the standard white uniform unless there is a special occasion or you just get tired of scrubs. I have worn my standard uniform 5 times in 4 months. The scrubs are the norm and the passengers like seeing that we are around.

Living conditions are normally a cabin by yourself with a window. However, with any new program like this, sometimes there are kinks that can't be solved as quickly. This does not mean you share a cabin it simply means that for a little while you may not have a window. You do not have a roommate.

You are a one and a half stripe officer. That really means nothing other than you have almost free reign of the ship. All resturants and public areas are open for you to use. You also have the option of eating in the crew, staff, or officers mess. Think McDonald's to Ryan's Steakhouse to Red Lobster.

The pay is right along the lines of many midwest and southeast EMS agencies. Keep in mind that nothing comes out of your pay unless you purchase something with your officer's account (think running a tab that is due the first week of the following month).

The job itself is not your run and gun paramedic life. I came from a very busy EMS agency that did six figure runs yearly. Shipboard medicince is mainly preventative medicine for the crew (flu shots, blood pressure monitoring, and the other more mundane tasks) and community health medicine for the passengers (follow-up procedures needed while on vacation, wound dressing, lab work). This job will take you out of your element and introduce an entirely new skill set that will make you a better medic all the way around. Our clinic has 14 beds in 8 rooms that allow us to do everything from STEMI's to X-rays and everything in between with a full pharmacy and lab. We have had several patients kept multiple days as inpatients (nurses only) and have disembarked critical patients after stabilizing them on board.

It's not all rainbows and lollipops though. Working with the same team everyday for 4 hours a day will lead to some head butting. You will not always get along with each other but the bright side is even on the worst day at work, I was still either just off the coast of someplace cool or preparing to go ashore to snorkel, chase a bear, or cross a couple of things off my bucket list.

The program is new to the industry and the kinks are still being worked out. I will say this, the majority of our passengers come from the US and love it when they look at my name tag and see a paramedic from USA. It's not as much a "USA! USA! USA!" moment, but we serve an older clientele and they truly love knowing that there is a standard of care they are used to present on the ship.

One last thing. My first contract has literally been the experience of a lifetime. You can make it however you want it to be. I have had made some good friends who started this job and then left for any number of reasons but they have still learned and enjoyed at least part of their time here.

Hope this dissertation helps.

Nice info here sir Seamedic!

 

[MMiz]

nailstab28, please stop bumping this thread. It's against our rules.

 

[nailstab28]

Technically, I was employed by them for a little bit. Did a week of training in LA. Princess is the first Cruise line to utilize Paramedics in that role. I know quite a bit of how the operation works and have some buds out in the field with them. Some like it. Some are looking for mainland jobs.

Contracts are 4 months on, two months off, and 4 months on again. So you'd be gone 8 months out of the year. Not easy for people with families. You're home would essentially be the ship. Americans are paid with direct deposit.

The travel is interesting if you love being on a ship. As a Paramedic you'd operate on a 24 on/24 off schedule. If you're lucky enough to be in port on your day off then you can spend the day there. I believe it's a 10p.m. curfew. For me, spending half a day in a touristy Carribean/Asian/Hawaiian port without a car isn't the same as, "travelling" to any of those locations. Keep in mind that the typical voyages for passengers are 7 days. So for whatever shipped you're placed on during your contract you'd be doing circles for 4 months. You'd see the same ports a lot.

The people running the program are knowledgeable Paramedics who know who we operate and all the equipment that we need. It's planned out really well actually. The facilities I tour'd were really nice and they did have port holes. They basically have nearly all of the capabilities of an 8 bed ER on board. (depending on the size of the ship) International waters/maritime are very interesting in regards to the expanse of your scope. There is the potential to learn a ton in regards to long term patient care.

You'd be working with Docs from South Africa and Nurses from the UK so you'd have to get used to their terminology/names for medicines. Paracetamol =Tylenol, Solubutomol = Albuterol, It's not NTG it's GTN Glyceryl trinitrate.

It makes finding a job in the Fire service (or any permanent job with retirement bennies) a million times harder if that is your angle. It'd be near impossible make any testings or interviews.

It seems like a neat gig and I probably would have loved it. It's just not something I could personally do long term. I would have had to miss three weddings (including my baby sisters) alone this year. Not to mention all the holidays. That and it's starting to look like I'm getting picked up by Honolulu EMS, which i'd probably love even more.

If you're young, single, and want to make an ok paycheck it'd probably be a pretty awesome experience. You'd probably catch the shipboard version of, "Island Fever" though. As big as those ships are, they get pretty tiny after a couple weeks. I have nothing really negative to say about my experience with the company, everyone seemed pretty awesome. Take what I say for what it's worth; I never actually made it to the field so I don't really know how it actually is once you get out there. I just know how it's supposed to work.

Sir beachmedic,

Very helpful post sir! Still at Princess Fleet now?

 

[nailstab28]

Thanks sir!

Technically, I was employed by them for a little bit. Did a week of training in LA. Princess is the first Cruise line to utilize Paramedics in that role. I know quite a bit of how the operation works and have some buds out in the field with them. Some like it. Some are looking for mainland jobs.

Contracts are 4 months on, two months off, and 4 months on again. So you'd be gone 8 months out of the year. Not easy for people with families. You're home would essentially be the ship. Americans are paid with direct deposit.

The travel is interesting if you love being on a ship. As a Paramedic you'd operate on a 24 on/24 off schedule. If you're lucky enough to be in port on your day off then you can spend the day there. I believe it's a 10p.m. curfew. For me, spending half a day in a touristy Carribean/Asian/Hawaiian port without a car isn't the same as, "travelling" to any of those locations. Keep in mind that the typical voyages for passengers are 7 days. So for whatever shipped you're placed on during your contract you'd be doing circles for 4 months. You'd see the same ports a lot.

The people running the program are knowledgeable Paramedics who know who we operate and all the equipment that we need. It's planned out really well actually. The facilities I tour'd were really nice and they did have port holes. They basically have nearly all of the capabilities of an 8 bed ER on board. (depending on the size of the ship) International waters/maritime are very interesting in regards to the expanse of your scope. There is the potential to learn a ton in regards to long term patient care.

You'd be working with Docs from South Africa and Nurses from the UK so you'd have to get used to their terminology/names for medicines. Paracetamol =Tylenol, Solubutomol = Albuterol, It's not NTG it's GTN Glyceryl trinitrate.

It makes finding a job in the Fire service (or any permanent job with retirement bennies) a million times harder if that is your angle. It'd be near impossible make any testings or interviews.

It seems like a neat gig and I probably would have loved it. It's just not something I could personally do long term. I would have had to miss three weddings (including my baby sisters) alone this year. Not to mention all the holidays. That and it's starting to look like I'm getting picked up by Honolulu EMS, which i'd probably love even more.

If you're young, single, and want to make an ok paycheck it'd probably be a pretty awesome experience. You'd probably catch the shipboard version of, "Island Fever" though. As big as those ships are, they get pretty tiny after a couple weeks. I have nothing really negative to say about my experience with the company, everyone seemed pretty awesome. Take what I say for what it's worth; I never actually made it to the field so I don't really know how it actually is once you get out there. I just know how it's supposed to work.

Sir beachmedic,

Very helpful post sir! Still at Princess Fleet now?