pcl2001

As a crewmember I can say that most non-cash gifts will probably get put in the waste bin or left behind. It's not because we don't want or appreciate them, it's that there's simply no room to pack them. You all bring 2 suitcases for a 7-day cruise. We bring 2 suitcases for 4-10 months and one of those is just for uniforms. When we get gifts or tips for other crewmembers, such as our cabin stewards (for officers), it's in the form of cash or phone/internet cards (which passengers can't buy).

Thanks. What about for an Alaskan cruise which is near land the whole time?

It will be off most of the time. For instance, you won't have service of any type while in Glacier Bay.

Want to be clear on this...so if I am on the ship at any port, I can use my phone without fear of having ship's tower charges?

 

Thanks

Yes. It will never be on while the ship is in port.

They have to wait until they're at least 12 miles from shore (it's only 2 miles in the EU). It's possible you may still have a little bit of signal from your home carrier when it's turned on so don't wait until the last second.

A couple years ago an employee told us they weren't allowed in the buitiques during a code red, I promptly told my wife what a cespool the shops were and she should stay clear!

 

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It's not just the boutiques - it's any passenger areas, unless they're working. Deck privileges are suspended during red level.

Side note - I managed to confirm a few things:

 

911 calls from passenger cabins are routed to PSD - depending on the ship, they have a different ring pattern or other form of notification.

 

Alert stations (fire alarms, cabin pull cords, etc) are routed to the bridge.

 

Staff have the ability to contact either PSD or the Bridge as appropriate and there are guidelines for doing so.

 

Making it very clear they did NOT know the particulars of the incident in question, from what I can tell, if the bartender thought it was just a fall, they should have initially contacted PSD. If they realized it was life threatening, they could have called the bridge. Code Alphas come from the bridge over the PA system normally.

 

This brings up a question - did anyone hear a Code called? If not, that may explain a lot of the response issues, as its probable the urgency was not communicated. If that is that case, that in itself is a huge issue, since as soon as someone started performing CPR, the urgency is there and the call should have been escalated, if not by the bartender than by other staff.

 

To the OP - If you have not contacted Princess (or been contacted by them) regarding this matter, it is recommended you do so. Again, without specific knowledge of the incident, the person I spoke to is of the opinion proper protocol was not followed.

Everything here is correct, except the bartender cannot "escalate" the incident. Only the medical team technically has the authority to call a code alpha and it's not even called that anymore.

I don't think I have ever seen one either on a ship. It may be handy to know where they are located (every floor, midship?).

 

I remember when they first became "popular". I heard that they were so easy, flight attendants could do them and that they were going to be on every plane. It wasn't until I went through CPR/AED training that I realized how easy they are. You put them on the person and the one I worked on, had voice instructions on what to do next. Impressive to whoever made these "easy for people like me".

There aren't any for passenger use.

If you pull a fire alarm, it does alarm the bridge, right? At least that is what the muster drill said or used to say.

Yes

I'm trying to confirm, but there also may be different emergency numbers available - which may explain my confusion. It's possible 'routine' 911s go to the desk, but 'critical' emergencies have a different line to the bridge (for a fire, or mass injury situation perhaps).

 

Another thing I thought of regarding medical response time could simply be how its reported. If there are multiple incidents in progress, a response to 'someone fell' may be prioritized lower than 'someone passed out and is not breathing'.

Yes, there are other emergency numbers, but they are not for passengers.

Huh. That strikes me as an odd protocol given they can't always answer the phone. They showed us the cabin alert display on the bridge, I would have assumed other emergencies go to the same station.

They must answer within a certain number of rings. If they don't, it will rollover to the bridge and then someone will be in trouble.

This passenger was very lucky indeed that you were there when she arrested. What you likely witnessed was a v-fib seizure, and the fact that you were able to establish unresponsiveness and cardiac/respiratory arrest almost immediately is what enabled you to recover a pulse with CPR only. Great job! That woman is still here because of you.

 

After more than 20 years in EMS and a CPR instructor, its disturbing to me that crewmembers are instructed not to intervene. I realized this is most likely a liability issue, but in cases like this time can make all the difference. Given the limited number of available medical responders on board and the fact that they are likely coming from deck 4, it may take the medical team a while to get there. Crew members trained to the level of first responders could make all the difference. You could have a hundred AEDs spread all over the ship, but they won't do a bit of good if people aren't trained to use them or instructed not to interfere. The American Heart Association CPR program is designed to train the general public and have as many trained responders as possible out walking the streets. There is no reason, in my opinion, that crew can't be trained to at least the bystander level with AED.

 

And what the heck were they going to do with a wheelchair for an arrest???

Ideally all the crew would have CPR training, but it would be very expensive and difficult to track. There's not much benefit to Princess for doing this, given the relatively low frequency that cardiac arrest occurs onboard. They already go above and beyond what they're required to do in terms of medical services as it is. You're more likely to survive a cardiac arrest on the ship than in most places on land due to the fast response. There's always a medical responder with an AED on-hand that can be pretty much anywhere on the ship in less than 5 mins. You won't find that in many places on land.

Princess was also the first and currently the only cruise line using paramedics as first responders. The other lines use nurses that may or may not have any emergency or first responder experience.

Unfortunately, we heard about this exact same thing happening three different times on the Emerald Princess last winter, and twice more I actually witnessed it (and, in fact, was the one who alerted 911 one time). The reality is that it took between 7 and 15 minutes each time for someone from medical to show up. What is truly frightening is that all calls to 911 are received at the PSD, who ask what the issue is and then call the Medical Department. I saw it happen, where that person then had to wait for someone from Medical to pick up and relay the information to them. I'd like to believe that Princess analyzed this and determined this was the best way to handle 911 calls, but it does seem like precious minutes are wasted.

This is an inherent problem with any emergency services. When you call 911/999/112 at home, the call will first be routed to an answering center which gets the nature/location of the problem, and then may transfer you again before the actual responders are notified. On board it's no different. Maybe one day there will be a better system.

Why would any Princess employees not help someone they saw and could help struggling for life? Is it because they would/could loose employment?

I just do not see how some people can ingore another that needs help.

 

Under the 2000 Federal Cardiac Arrest Survival Act, Congress gave immunity from civil damages to people administering CPR or an automatic external defibrillator, with exceptions in cases of gross negligence or willful misconduct. All states have Good Samaritan laws that grant some immunity protection for those performing CPR and an AED (again with restrictions) but they vary. I would like to know somebody helped my loved one--atleast they made an attempt.

 

This event has made me more aware and I will go back for a refresher CPR course. I want to be able to help if necessaary.

They probably did not realize the seriousness of the situation and if they did, may have been scared. Most of them have no medical training so they wouldn't know what to do. All of them are more than willing to help out, but usually require some type of direction, which is why they're instructed to call 911 and wait for medical to arrive. Ideally the first responder will be there in less than 5 mins, but something obviously went wrong for it to take 18 minutes. I'm sure this incident will be reviewed by the shoreside medical department and a corrective action report made.

I am aware of what a medical certificate required by a crew member is.

 

All crew are required to take a first aid course and have cert when they board.

First aid training includes CPR.

I don't know where you're getting your information but it's not true, not on Princess. I work there, so I think I would know. There is no first aid certificate or CPR training required for non-medical crew.

This is inaccurate, every crewmember is required to have a first aid certificate which includes CPR. This is kept up to date and they are required to have these cert when they arrive onboard.

That's not true at all. Only the medical staff are required to have CPR. I think you're confusing the "first aid certificate" with a medical certificate, which has nothing to do with CPR or first aid. It's simply to certify that they are fit to work at sea. These are required by every crewmember when they come onboard.

Crewmembers are instructed to call 911 and not intervene during a medical emergency because they're not medically trained, so it's a liability issue. They're not trained in CPR because it's not cost-effective when medical staff are never more than 5 mins away. I would be concerned if it really took 18 mins for the first responder to arrive. Most people tend to overestimate the time it takes during an emergency. Not saying it couldn't have taken 18 mins, but something obviously went wrong if it did, such as the wrong location was given.

I called the AT&T International Customer Service which is a totally different department, yesterday and got some clarification, but I'm going to call again today and talk to someone else to verify the info. If they both give me the same answers, then I will post it.

 

But what I was wondering, for the ships wifi, in order to use the Internet, you have to purchase the Internet minutes, but if you only want to connect to the wifi to use iMessage, which is free, then technically you won't need minutes, just access to the wifi, right? I'm going to ask that to AT&T too.

I think the terminology is getting confused. When most people refer to WiFi, they're referring to the internet. This isn't technically correct, but it's commonly accepted terminology. You can be connected to a WiFi network and not have internet connectivity, as is the case on the ships. Just connecting to the ship's WiFi does not get you connected to the internet, there is an additional step, and that's logging in via their webpage. After that you're connected to the internet. With that explained, iMessage requires an active internet connection and not just WiFi. Therefore iMessage won't work unless you're connected and logged in to the ship's WiFi. However, some people have reported that it still works after logging out from the internet but staying connected to WiFi, although usually only for a few minutes.

pcl2001,

Very good information. Thank you for sharing. For those of us that get some free time on Princess' WiFi, turning on Airplane, which also automatically turns off WiFi (at least on my iPhone 5 with iOS 7.1.1) and then turning WiFi on while leaving Airplane on, may be the way to go for free texts, at least while your free WiFi minutes last. This is what DrivesLikeMario mentioned. Is this correct?

I think there's still a little confusion. You must be connected to the ship's WiFi in order to send/receive messages via iMessage with the phone in airplane mode. By connected, I mean actually logged in using your onboard account. You must be logged in the entire time for it to work (NOTE: Some people have reported being able to still send/receive iMessages even after logging out from the network but still connected to WiFi.)

I do believe that to get free texts with iMessage on land both parties have to be connected to WiFi. If I am on WiFi at home but my wife is on the road the bubble is green and we are using the cell service for texts - if she is at Starbucks on WiFi the bubble is blue and we are using Apple's network for free. That is the way it works for us on land. Does this make sense?

You don't have to be on WiFi, you just need a data connection, which can be via cellular (3G/4G) or WiFi. I'm not sure why your wife's phone would not be using iMessage when she's not on WiFi, unless she has cellular data turned off or it's unavailable. If both users have iMessage enabled and have a data connection, it should use iMessage (blue) and not SMS (green). As far as I know, there is no way to set iMessage to only work over WiFi.

I think if you turn on airplane mode you will get nothing.

That's correct. However, if you turn on WiFi while in airplane mode and connect to the ship's WiFi, you can send/receive texts via iMessage. Texts using SMS will not work as this requires a connection to the cellular network.

It can seem confusing because of the way Apple integrates iMessage into the messaging program. iMessage is simply a messaging protocol similar to Whatsapp, Skype, etc., except those program require you to use their own program and are not built-in.

I have an iPhone 5 with AT&T which I turn off while cruising except in ports like St. Thomas with AT&T cell service. I have been reading these posts with interest but after the conflicting information on charges / no charges I don't know what is right or not and I am left wondering. Perhaps as other posts come in all will be clarified. :confused:

 

To gator582: When the Apple store helped us set up our phones they told us about the blue/green clouds. To use iMessage you have to be on WiFi and the recipient also has to be on WiFi. If the recipient has an iPhone but he/she is not on WiFi the cloud will be green, not blue. Basically with both parties on WiFi Apple uses its own internal network to send the texts bypassing the carrier's cell network.

 

I miss the good old days when I would go to Cozumel or Grand Cayman to scuba and there was no cable TV, no CNN, no cells of course, and only 1 cruise ship a week (none in the Caymans). I could really disconnect from reality but now I check messages, family, stocks, etc. Too bad...

You don't have to be on WiFi to use iMessage, you just have to have data service, which CAN be from WiFi OR the cell service. On the ship there are 2 different ways to connect to data services using your phone. One is via the shipboard cell service called MCP and the other is by using the ship's WiFi service. Using the cell network, you will pay by the kB, at a rate determined by your carrier. For AT&T, it's $0.195/kb, or about $20/MB (http://www.wireless.att.com/travelguide/coverage/coverage_details.jsp?CIDL=1633&MNC=CING) You must have cellular data and roaming turned on for it to work. Using the ship's WiFi, you will need to login to their network and pay by the minute. Either way could be expensive. For the latter, you can put your phone in airplane mode and just turn on WiFi. You won't incur any international roaming fees this way.

Some people have not incurred roaming fees by not making or receiving calls, but AT&T does warn you that by letting a call go to voicemail while roaming, you may be charged for both an incoming and outgoing call, even if no message is left (http://www.wireless.att.com/learn/international/roaming/faq.jsp). Your mileage may vary as reported by others.

See above.

I guess you've been lucky, as I know people that have gotten bill shock when they let their calls go to voicemail while roaming. What I posted comes directly from AT&T's site: http://www.wireless.att.com/learn/international/roaming/faq.jsp

You won't need to I message so you won't need wifi, what I always do is turn off cell data so that I won't be charged any data fees. My I phone 4s still can make and recieve calls and text. There is nothing else you need to do. Just make sure everyones phone has the cell data turned off,

go to settings/cellular/turn off cell data, simple.

 

Do not use airplane mode or you won't be able to do anything.

 

There are no charges if you don't answer your phone or make calls. The only charge you will have are the text charges.

There are no roaming charges unless you use the phone to make/recieve calls.

Text charges will be on your AT&T bill.

That's not necessarily true. If you receive a call, don't answer it, and it's sent to voicemail, you could be charged not only for the incoming call but for an outgoing call as well.

Per AT&T:

Q. How am I charged for voicemail calls while roaming internationally?

A. Voicemail calls are charged as follows:

When your device is on:

Calls that you do not answer that are routed to the AT&T voicemail system will be charged as an international roaming incoming call to your device.

In addition, the foreign carrier's routing of that call to the AT&T voicemail system may generate an outgoing call charge from your device's location to the U.S.

These charges apply even if the caller disconnects from the voicemail system without leaving a message.

If your device is turned off or in flight mode and the wireless network is off:

When someone tries to call you, the call will go directly to your personal voicemail greeting.

Since the network does not try to deliver the call to you in a foreign country, there are no international roaming charges.

When receiving Visual Voicemail messages on your smartphone or Apple® iPhone®:

Visual Voicemail messages received when roaming outside of the U.S. will be charged at international roaming data rates, either at the international pay-per-use data rate or against your smartphone or iPhone international data package.

You need to leave the phone on as usual in order to text between phones. That's the best way to send and receive texts. If you all have iPhones, you can text between phones for free as you'll connect via iMessage automatically. If your texts are blue, you're using iMessage. If they are green, you're sending/receiving texts.

This isn't entirely accurate when at sea. While iMessage doesn't technically cost anything, it does use data, and data is not cheap using the ship's cell network (MCP). According to AT&T (http://www.wireless.att.com/travelguide/coverage/coverage_details.jsp?CIDL=1633&MNC=CING), data is $0.195/kb which will come to around $20/MB (for comparison on land $20 will get you 300 MB! :eek:) In order to use iMessage, you'll need to leave data roaming on, which means any applications running in the background will consume data, which could lead to some very high charges. So while the per message cost may be cheaper using iMessage, the data use from other apps will be unpredictable and possibly exorbitant, therefore I would disable cellular data and just use normal texting/SMS. Per AT&T, it's $.50 per message to send. There's no charge listed to receive. MMS messages are $1.30 to send. Apple uses MMS to send group messages so if you send a message to 2 or more people, you'll be charged $1.30 and not $.50. Voice calls are $2.50/min, and keep in mind that even if you don't answer your phone, if it's routed to voicemail you'll be charged double - for the incoming call and then the outgoing call where it's forwarded to voicemail in the US, so I would let everyone know not to call you while you're gone and if you do get any calls, answer them and quickly (<1min) let them know you're roaming and will contact them later.

Hope this helps.

The patch stays in your blood stream for up to three days after you remove it and is the same drugs as the OTC stuff and I am hoping I will need no drugs. I am wondering how likely I am to need anything based on other peoples experiences.

It is NOT the same drug as the OTC stuff, it's a prescription drug called scopolamine, made infamous by the CIA because it was used as a truth serum. It's also been used as a date rape drug. It is not available on the ships because of the side effects. You may take it and not have any problems but we always see a few people that have reactions to it and don't even realize it. They start acting strange and their friends or family bring them down because they don't know what's going on. Even after the patch is taken off, it will remain in the bloodstream for a while, especially if the site of the patch isn't scrubbed well. I would urge you to try some OTC or herbal remedies first as they are generally safer.

As I posted when this topic came up before, it's a myth that taking loperamide (Imodium) will keep the virus in your system longer. Loperamide is the treatment of choice for norovirus. By not taking it, you will just prolong your misery and isolation period, plus you may get dehydrated. If the diarrhea is caused by bacteria such as E.coli or shigella, then yes, you should avoid it. You probably won't know this without seeing a doctor so if you don't have a high fever or blood in the stool, then it's probably safe to take. Bottom line is that if you develop diarrhea, you must inform the medical center anyway, so just let them advise you on what to do.

I hope that you stayed away your self! Is Code Red the same as : Code Alpha for a "Immediate" Medical Emergency? Stay healthy and so sorry about the virus! :eek:

It's not actually called "code red." There are 3 different levels of sanitation - green, yellow and red. The level is determined by the ship's senior officers, mostly based on the number of passengers/crew reporting certain symptoms. Some ships always go to yellow level sanitation guidelines for the first 48 hrs of the cruise as a precaution. Others do an "enhanced green." Most passengers won't notice many differences between the levels, but it's very apparent behind the scenes.

"Code alpha" and other codes are also being replaced by new terminology.