If you go on a cruise ship to take a vacation, you’ll be made aware that the cruise ship has a doctor. This person may not be able to provide all of the care that you would get in a hospital, of course, but you can get basic medical care. With so many passengers on the ship for such a long time, this is an important part of the process.
But what if you are looking into working on a cargo ship? You may spend far longer out at sea, and you’re certainly in more dangerous conditions as you work with heavy equipment and try to perform manual tasks on the ship. Does that ship have a doctor who can help you if you get hurt?
Most cargo ships have no doctors
Unfortunately, the general rule is that cargo ships and other sorts of vessels that are being operated in this manner do not have doctors on them. Instead, members of the crew will be trained in basic sorts of first aid. They can offer care as the ship moves toward its port.
As you can imagine, though, this means that you may not get very good medical care as soon as an injury occurs. Other people just like you are going to do the best that they can to render care, but this is not the same as seeing someone who went through years and years of medical school. This can make any injuries on a ship much more dangerous, or those injuries could turn out to be more severe than they ever would have been on shore.
If you do suffer from serious injuries in the course of your employment, then you need to know about all the legal steps to take to protect your interests.