Bright Side to Norwalk Virus or Cruise Virus

But, there is a bright side. While the Norwalk virus hits you suddenly, it leaves you the same way. All of a sudden your symptoms are gone and you feel normal again. Most stomach ailments, including the Norwalk virus, can be cured with bed rest and over the counter aids. If your sickness is something more serious, the ship's medical personnel will help you out. Medium to large cruise ships will have medical staff onboard. If you're booked on a small ship with no medical staff consider bringing a few remedies with you for diarrhea relief or other ailments to which you may be susceptible.

The 16 largest passenger cruise lines are members of the International Council of Cruise Lines, a nonprofit trade association dedicated to helping the industry provide safe and secure environments for passengers and crew. Member cruise lines have been proactive on the subject of the quality of medical care onboard. All member cruise lines agree to meet or to exceed health care guidelines approved in 2000. These guidelines pertain to onboard medical facilities, staffing requirements, medical equipment and procedures. Any patient requiring a more comprehensive medical facility is taken to a facility on shore.

Medical Guidelines in Place

The guidelines were established to achieve three goals: to provide emergency medical care, to stabilize patients or start treatment, and to evacuate seriously ill or injured patients.

Some of the guidelines include having a ship medical center with doctors and nurses on call 24 hours a day. Minimum requirements are one examination room, one intensive care unit room and one isolation room per ship. The minimum number of beds is one per 1,000 passengers and crew. Medical staff will hold current physician or registered nurse licenses and will have had at least three years of clinical practice in general and emergency medicine.

Medicines on board will include gastrointestinal system medications, advanced life support medicines, cardiovascular system, respiratory system and central nervous system medications, plus a host of medicines normally found in a hospital emergency ward. These include medications for infectious diseases, endocrine systems, obstetrics, skin disease, eye, ear, nose and throat medications and more. A basic medical laboratory will be onboard and ships built after 1996 will have an X-ray facility.

So, if you are on a large cruise ship you are in good medical hands. But remember, if you have cruise virus or Norwalk virus symptoms, the best medical staff in the world won't be much help to you. The Norwalk flu virus is a here today, gone tomorrow type virus, and will leave you as quickly as it arrived.