Princess Cruises?

Jambi said:
If what was said about being a 1 stripe officer with your own quarters, it's likely that the situation would be vastly different for the medic right?
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Yeah, from what I read, being an Officer is night and day different than not.
 
n7lxi said:
You say protocols are basic, Yet there is a full load out of ALS gear?

Any chance you could post some protocols? Say for an unstable tach or pulmonary edema...
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On scene protocols are very basic. You have to keep in mind that you are on a ship and that the ER is never more than five minutes away. You also have to keep in mind that there is no traditional patient turnover like we have in the field. Your job doesn't end when you get to the nurses. You're a part of the ED team and you're expected to see the full course of the treatment.

There is no portable CPAP. The first in bag 02 tank isn't large enough.

There are a couple ways you could play unstable tach.
You could call for a second in nurse to meet you at the scene and bring your monitor and drug box, or you could initiate a code alpha in which you get the whole world and all of your gear brought to you by up to 15+ people rapid response. They keep bringing you more and more gear until you call off the code alpha.

Directly from the protocol.

Cadiac - Abnormal Heart Rate

Basic Care
-O2 as indicated
-Shock position as needed
(skipping ahead to unstable tach)

Rapid Heart Rate above 150 beats per minute - Severe Distress
- Apply AED (To see a very poor ECG rhythm. Just to confirm fast I guess))
- Initiate Code Alpha
- IV Access

and that's it. Once all your gear gets there it's up to you to do as much as you feel necessary on scene before moving the patient to the ER.

The Pulmonary Edema protocol is just repeating GTN and maintaining systolic BP. 02 as indicated.

You could initiate a CODE ALPHA but really with a less than 5 minute walking transport just getting them to the ED and putting them on CPAP is probably a lot better than waiting for your gear to arrive on scene.

With a population of 3,000-5,000 on the larger ships you can see it operates like a tiny town. A large percentage are geriatrics and that might increase call volume a tick; but I don't think there is a huge amount of stat calls. Talking to my buds out there doing it it seems to be pretty chill.

They need Medics. So if you have two years of experience, national reg, and this is your cup of tea I say go for it. Just don't expect to be spending a ton of time off the ship in exotic locales. There is a little; but not really as much as I would like personally. And expect to be away from friends and family 8 months out of the year.

Just fyi- they have had a pretty significant amount of turnover so far. Take that as you will.
 
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It seems like it has the potential to allow you to learn a lot and be allowed to do a lot by the ship's doctor if you prove that you aren't a total ****** seeing as you will have much more continuous contact with them unlike most of us on the streets. The NREMT scope is pretty wide as well.

With your airway bag is it a full ALS bag with ETTs and hopefully some form of capnography?

I unfortunately do not have 2 years experience and really enjoy where I'm at right now otherwise this is definitely something I'd consider along with having it tucked away in my back pocket for my mid 20s crisis.
 
NVRob said:
It seems like it has the potential to allow you to learn a lot and be allowed to do a lot by the ship's doctor if you prove that you aren't a total ****** seeing as you will have much more continuous contact with them unlike most of us on the streets. The NREMT scope is pretty wide as well.

With your airway bag is it a full ALS bag with ETTs and hopefully some form of capnography?

I unfortunately do not have 2 years experience and really enjoy where I'm at right now otherwise this is definitely something I'd consider along with having it tucked away in my back pocket for my mid 20s crisis.
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Yeah it is a full airway bag with ETT and Cap.

As wide as the Medic scope is it gets a lot wider over international waters and with Maritime law. Basically, the as long as the Doc trains you you can do anything they ask of you.

They said some of the trouble they were running into with the initial Medics was a lot of, "that's not my job that is a nurses job." type situations. The Medical Director told us they don't want us to think in terms of, "jobs" they want us to think in terms of, "skill sets".

For instance the Medical Director thought it was ridiculous that in a lot of areas US paramedics are not allowed to administer Tylenol(Paracetamol). As long as you feel comfortable and build a good rapport with the Doc you can assist as much as you want with patient care. Perhaps even learn how to do a suture. It would be an awesome learning experience. Of course, offset by lower call volume.

ICU patients are probably still the nurses domain but you can probably help out if you so choose.
 
Someother things I'll add to from my interview:
NR vs state - your state is fine but they would want you to get your NR within a year

I would think of it as skill sets also. There's no radiologist, no lab, no surgical team.

You have five paid training days, wasn't 100% clear on that. But, one thing I like is they will pay for your PALS, ACLS, ITLS, and so on if you can justify it being a necessity on the job. Considering the widened scope you'll have onboard, I don't see that a problem.

There's some flexibility for the schedule. As my interviewer put it, they want 8 months of a year out of you. So, 4 on 2 off then maybe a 3 on 1 off if something important comes up (like a wedding). The time you have off is yours however you want to spend it.

Costs on the ship are basically zero except for, of all things, detergent. Your room is cleaned daily and they do your laundry for you.

They are doing a training session in LA for Sept 12, 13th and then they take it from there. There's a mountain of paperwork and a requisite physical and dental check-up.

This is my take on it:
I've worked in a very advanced system as far as equipment and electronics. Didn't change the calls, and my scope was becoming increasing narrower. I was becoming a specialist in... nothing medical. That's fine if you want to end up working for an FD that doesn't fight structure fires very often and running the same number of medical aids.
I want to travel and I don't want to dissappear for 1-2 years from friends and family. Also, I need to work. Stupid me bought a house :P You don't spend a lot of time at the exotic locals, but you can learn where to go, where not to go. You also have a great opportunity to meet/work with people from other parts of the world and network. Say you end your rotation in SE asia or aussie. Don't think you HAVE to go home and stare at the walls; go take a month to explore then go home for a month (take ITLS or any certs you can nab) then back to it.

And, if all my lofty extrapolations are wrong, and the high turnover is because you're always working, not learning, and can't have much fun then... bail.
 
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This is super interesting. Im hesitant of giving up the nearly 9 years invested where I work currently but the perks of this are attractive.

Whats the pay? If you finish off somewhere far, far away do they cover travel home? Are you placed on any ship in their fleet? The Australia and smaller ships look neat.
 
shfd739 said:
This is super interesting. Im hesitant of giving up the nearly 9 years invested where I work currently but the perks of this are attractive.

Whats the pay? If you finish off somewhere far, far away do they cover travel home? Are you placed on any ship in their fleet? The Australia and smaller ships look neat.
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Pay is negotiated. I don't know if Princess wants me listing anymore than I already did. But it's decent depending on where you are coming from. If you're coming from Kansas it is probably a lot. If you're coming from California it's ok.

They cover food and board so if you give up your home you could probably save a lot of cash.

They cover travel expenses.

I'm not sure if the smaller ships have medics yet. Especially the world cruise ships with like 600 people. I think they still do Doc/RN. Especially since there is virtually no call volume on the smaller ships.

I was offered a Mediterrean cruise and the Hawaii/California/Alaska circle. Ship placement depends on what assignments they need to staff immediately. More flexibility after you have been with them over a year.
 
Jambi said:
If what was said about being a 1 stripe officer with your own quarters, it's likely that the situation would be vastly different for the medic right?
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As I recall there were some crappy officer stuff too but yes mostly I think it's the rank and file that get hosed. I'll look for the article when I get a chance.
 
bigbaldguy said:
As I recall there were some crappy officer stuff too but yes mostly I think it's the rank and file that get hosed. I'll look for the article when I get a chance.
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Or go read Cruise Ship Confidential - a funny book that will make you swear to never work on a ship as anything other than an officer. And to think twice before doing that.
 
This really interests me. Currently young, single, not on an apartment lease, and unemployed. (Yikes that sounds like a bad dating profile. It is what it is.) Could be a great opportunity.

What's the acuity like? I understand its probably a lot of BS just like anywhere but are there at least some patients that will make you think and/or deal with longer term? What sort of skills are the medics responsible for/able to perform? Do they do a lot of skills at all? I heard something mentioned about international waters and an expanded scope of practice earlier...
 
Aquity is going to vary by season and location according to a ED Doc I have been speaking with that is a Cruise Doc in his spare time. He said the larger ships have ICU's while the smaller ones that follow the coastlines do not. He says the work varies from the sniffles to large outbreaks as seen on the news and everything in between.

He says when you hear of docs telling their terminal patients to go take a cruise it is very true. He says you will see alot of end stage people, some make the whole cruise and some dont. There is typically a morgue on the ship somewhere. Lots of trade secrets that the public will never know about thats for sure.
 
Corky said:
He says when you hear of docs telling their terminal patients to go take a cruise it is very true. He says you will see alot of end stage people, some make the whole cruise and some dont. There is typically a morgue on the ship somewhere. Lots of trade secrets that the public will never know about thats for sure.
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I'm tempted to say that they don't have morgues per say, but basically any large walk in freezer will do just as well. However most people don't want to think that their buffet was sitting next to a body for any period of time.
 
Lol exactly. Make shift morgues, pretty sure even international waters dont allow the deceased to be cooled along with tonights dinner.

Though I bet New Guinea natives would just love it! No more bar crawls looking for a victim!
 
The morgue is actually by the ER. Think it can hold up to two bodies. I'm a little fuzzy on the details. I was only shown the facilities once.
 
jaysonsdj-

How long from the time you applied until you heard back from Princess?
 
Timeline ran like this: applied on a monday, thursday got the call for a interview the following friday and get an answer the following monday. Two weeks of stuff. Probably because they're having training in Sept.

I got picked up, now I'm going through the fun paperwork. Anyone interested, you better have healthy teeth and a BMI <30.
 
Also, they're working on being more flexible, deploying people when they can take off and not ordering them to a ship for such and such period. As an example: I have a wedding in May I would prefer not to miss. So, its possible to hold off deployment until November/December and work for 4-5 months. They're willing for you to work 3 month stints if you need it badly enough.

As I learn more, its not what I thought it would be (although I shouldn't be surprised being a medic). Its kinda like a part time job as a contractor. Need to talk to my accountant...
 
So after reading all of this, I still have one question: Are shipboard medics required to wear the same stiff, uncomfortable uniforms (including the tie) that the rest of the crew wears? The thought of 24 hrs in a button down collar and tie is enough to make me cringe...
 
Inside scoop on cruise lines

Hey guys, not an EMT but was an officer on a cruise ship for a while, and thought I would chime in to answer some of the questions.

- Yes, there is a morgue. And some people do cruise year-round instead of staying in retirement homes.

- Everyone has to wear uniforms (except dancers/singers on some cruise lines). Usually the uniforms are nicer the higher your rank. Don't worry about wearing an EMT uniform. The spa girls will be impressed ;)

- Contract lengths usually can't be shortened (and even then you would need to pay your own return flight) but vacation time is negotiable.

- Being an "officer" is a pretty sweet role on cruise ships. Great for a while and I recommend it. Assuming you like to travel!

good luck!

Roy
** CL edit - removed link to blog **
 
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p.s. Sorry, didn't know links to travel blogs weren't allowed. Btw, it's a blog about working on cruise ships so just thought it was relevant ;)
 
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