Feeling sea sick? If you are enjoying a beautiful cruise, that shouldn’t be an issue. It is actually required by law that cruise ships have medical staff on board for passengers who are feeling under the weather during their vacations. However, this wasn’t always the case and unfortunately, not all cruise ship medical staff live up to their expectations. Medical malpractice can occur anywhere a doctor is practicing, even out in the middle of the ocean on a cruise ship. Luckily, Dr. Edward Mallory understands the history of cruise ship medical malpractice and what actions need to be taken when it occurs.
The Story Behind Cruise Line Medical Malpractice
In 1988, the “Barbetta ruling” made it so cruise ships could not be sued for medical malpractice. This was great news for the medical staff who worked on the cruise ships and terrible news for anyone who became ill while on a cruise ship with a negligent doctor or nurse.
A decision was finally made in 2014 to hold cruise lines liable for negligence made by shipboard medical staff. The decision was made from the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals after an elderly cruise ship passenger fell and hit his head. His injury did not receive any attention from the designated medical personnel and he passed away about a week later.
Justice Stanley Marcus rejected the “Barbetta rule” in the case and explained that the rule was originally in place because at the time, cruise ships had either sparse or no medical facilities and doctors. Now that technology is so updated that the cruise industry is able to comply with the American College of Emergency Physicians guidelines with state-of-the-art medical facilities, there is no ethical reasoning for patients to receive poor treatment.
Getting Sick On a Cruise
It is required by the American College of Emergency Physician guidelines that cruise ships have medical staff on call for 24 hours. The number of doctors and nurses on board depend on the size of the ship and how many people are on board. Passengers who feel ill or have symptoms of becoming ill are encouraged to inform the medical staff immediately so that proper measures can be taken. Due to the small quarters and high volume of people, illness is taken more serious so that outbreak is prevented as quickly as possible.
Some of the most common medical issues that are experienced on a cruise ship include motion sickness and respiratory injuries. Regardless of the severity of the medical emergency, every patient deserves proper care and treatment from a qualified physician. With the medical advancements that have been made since cruise ships became a popular vacation venture, there really is no excuse for patients to not receive the treatment they would be able to on land. When medical issues are not treated properly, it is a very big deal that needs to be addressed immediately and handled in a court of law so that all parties are appropriately compensated.
How Can Dr. Edward Mallory Help?
Florida is the most popular location in North America to depart from when going on a cruise. It is the state with the most cruise ship ports and is utilized by the biggest cruise ship lines in the world. Cruises have seen a tremendous growth in popularity and the result has been more people than ever on one cruise ship at a time.
When a cruise ship departs, it is full of thousands of people who are looking forward to a wonderful journey. Keeping all of those people safe and healthy should be the very top priority of every single person who works for that cruise line. Dr. Edward Mallory is located in Central Florida, which gives him excellent access to all cruise ports. His experience and medical expertise are available for any cruise passenger who feels as though they experienced medical malpractice during treatment on a cruise ship.
Contact Dr. Edward Mallory as soon as you are able to so that he can best assist you with your case in the most timely efficient way that he can. Medical malpractice cases are nothing to wait around on and the expertise of Dr. Edward Mallory is valuable enough in a case that it can speed up the entire process so that you can put your negative experience behind you and look forward to the problem free vacations you deserve.
