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The requirements to work as a cruise ship doctor include a professional degree, relevant post-graduation experience and an unrestricted medical license. Life at sea isn’t for everyone – the lack of a true day off, and being constantly on-call, can be stressful. But at the same time, senior doctors are looked after on a ship with their own cabin (most other crew members share rooms), plus you can enjoy your expenses being taken care of and just bank your salary. To become a doctor on a cruise ship, you normally need at least three years of experience working in emergency care or a similar role, with evidence of your experience in each field.
Cruise ship doctor job description
Typically, a cruise ship will have two doctors onboard, or at least one doctor and one nurse. A senior doctor will be primarily responsible for the passengers, while a junior doctor or nurse will care for the staff and cover the senior doctor when needed. They are required to have at least one hospital bed per 1,000 passengers. They keep the usual assortment of medications, simple X-ray services, minor surgical equipment, lumbar puncture tray, EKG machine and the basic equipment found in a medical ICU, including the ability to intubate. When a ship is at sea, the ship needs to carry everything needed to get the patient through their problem until the ship arrives at the next port. At that time, the patient is evaluated to determine if the patient’s problem can be treated well on the ship, or if the patient needs to be off-loaded to a local hospital.
Paying for Medical Care While Cruising
They also had to be quarantined in a specific area of the boat. I myself was once isolated for 48 hours in the medical facility due to catching Norovirus, or as we call it, GI. Expect far more hands-on and intimate interaction with your patient with more autonomy and responsibility than you may receive in other healthcare settings.
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Career Change Guide: How Much Do Doctors on Cruise Ships Make?
Sometimes they let me know about the opportunity months in advance; other times I'll get a call two days before I'm needed. Five weeks after my interview in London, I got accepted in February 2010. Seven months later, at 32, I was on my way to Miami for a one-week training before joining one of the Celebrity Cruises for six months, departing from San Francisco. The best background would be an emergency doctor, but if you’ve only worked in primary care then you can seek to gain the necessary experience in emergency and anaesthetics through other means too. On a recent cruise, my mum suffered an injury and needed to see an emergency doctor at 11 pm. The waiter who was first on the scene called the medical department, who called the ship’s nighttime supervisor.
More in Physician
Some cruise lines do offer family accommodations for certain positions, including doctors, which allow them to bring their families on board. These accommodations are typically larger and more suitable for family living. However, it’s important to note that family accommodations may be limited, and there may be specific requirements or restrictions in place. Cruise ship contracts and policies can vary, so it’s best to inquire directly with the cruise line recruiter regarding their policies on family accommodation for doctors before signing up if that’s important to you. Think about it – the largest cruise ships have almost 7,000 passengers on board, as well as the crew. That’s a lot of people, so the odds of someone getting sick or suffering an injury aren’t small.
Cruise Ship Doctors and Medical Facilities Onboard
A transfusion allowed the medical team to stabilize the patient until they could get back to land. We recently talked to two physicians who discussed what it's like to work locum physician jobs for a major cruise line. Stephanie Garcia, MD, is an emergency medicine physician in Albuquerque, New Mexico, who had previously worked a locum tenens assignment doing COVID relief in Southern California. When her AMN Healthcare recruiter called about the cruise ship assignment, she was immediately interested. Respiratory infections, including influenza or the common cold, are also common due to the proximity of individuals from various regions.
I've always wanted to work on cruises
But this assignment was much shorter, and it felt like the opportune time since Chan’s son was doing online classes and she needed a break from the local onslaught of COVID cases. Complete your details in the form below and a member of our team will contact you to discuss opportunities. This is a fantastic opportunity to visit spectacular destinations such as America, Australia, the Caribbean and the Mediterranean, all while performing the job you love. During the day, you will hold two three-hour clinics, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. The cost of these meds will be more than if you shopped at your home pharmacy but about the same as getting off the ship and buying them in port.
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Cruise Ship Doctor Jobs with Carnival Corporation
It’s essential to recognize that working on a cruise ship can also be demanding, with long hours and limited time off. However, for those who enjoy travel, adventure, and meeting new people, it can be a rewarding and unforgettable experience. It’s important to note that specific requirements and hiring processes may vary between cruise lines. Therefore, it is advisable to check with the individual cruise line or recruitment agency for their specific qualifications and prerequisites when applying for a doctor position on a cruise ship.
Past 6 Months
I know of multiple people who are alive today because they had cardiac arrest on board a cruise ship rather than at home. At home, the ambulance might take minutes or longer to arrive. On board, doctors and nurses are typically only several minutes away from any location on board ship. Contracts usually last around four months, with two contracts “permitted” each year. In total, doctors on cruise ships work a maximum of eight months and have four months of vacation time over the course of the same year.
Life-saving treatment can cost thousands of dollars, and if you need to be airlifted to a hospital, expect it to cost around $20,000, or even into six figures if you’re somewhere remote. You’ll be able to speak to a member of the crew who will be able to page the doctor, and they will return to the medical station to see you. Despite the long hours, the pay is generally good and allows doctors to save money and plan ahead financially. This led to a massive reduction in revenue and employment, with an estimated 600,000 people losing their jobs and $50 billion in losses for the cruise line operators.
More significantly, cruise ship doctors also benefit from free healthcare insurance and travel to and from home to where the ship is docked. The ship's medical center contains several beds and is set up to treat minor nonemergency conditions or to stabilize passengers facing life-threatening conditions. As the cruise ship industry continues to expand, the need for qualified medical staff is growing. Cruise ships need doctors on board to take care of the needs of their passengers and crew. Most cruise ship doctors working on passenger cruise ships can expect to earn anywhere between $8000 and $12000 monthly.
Cunard Line is one of the oldest cruise lines, founded in 1839, and is currently part of Carnival Corporation. They have a small fleet of three ships (a fourth ship is currently under construction) and are famous for transatlantic crossings. For more information on daily life and the pros and cons of working on a cruise ship read our ‘life on a cruise ship’ guide. This blog helps over a million people to plan their cruises each month. Cruise ship doctor roles are good for those with a positive attitude and the energy to work every day.
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