Should we reconsider taking those that are frail on a cruise?

[WCAB]

The recent fire on the Triumph got me to thinking. As my parents became elderly and gave up long distance road trips it became a yearly event to plan a family cruise. My Mom and Dad loved it but on the last cruise they were both pretty frail and did require family assistance to maneuver around the ship and they cut back on the excursions, spending time on our balcony while the rest of us were out and about. We never envisioned an accident or how they would fare if something happened like happened on the Triumph. Since they usually booked inside cabins, this event would have been very difficult for them due to their physical limitations. I see kids all the time with their senior parents and it is a great way to bond and is the basis of some of my fondest memories but wonder if I was being naive to not consider the risks.

[Cruizinman]

Yes !

[jacksmom09]

Yes!!

[WCAB]

Probably so and maybe this will give some pause for thought.

[elhenry]

You were not naive; the risks were infinitesimal and I remain convinced cruises are a great multi-generational vacation. We are glad we have those memories.

 

And I am probably, I hope, one of the few who knows whereof I speak: my father died on our sailing on the NCL Jewel last year. (and nothing was wrong with the ship).

 

<<http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1612351&highlight=elhenry>>

 

And we are taking my mom, with Parkinsons and severe arthritis on a cruise this summer. If I were a Carnival cruiser, this incident would not stop me. Treasure your memories!

 

el henry

[sharecruises]

To be honest with you , I have been thinking this for some time now...

 

A friend of mine debated on taking her much beloved and terminally ill brother in law and sister on a cruise....I was one of the (misguided) people with happy thoughts who urged her to go for it

 

He...and they...were pretty miserable..and this was on the Epic , with great NCL staff. He was sick, could not eat much, could not sleep...anxiety....my friend was sort of stuck in the middle as her sister began "blaming" her...

trips to doctor on board....meals in cabin...and so forth

 

He took a bad turn, pain meds were not working or ? I am not sure, causing stomach problems , and when they got off the ship he was admitted to hospital and then to hospice care where he died a few weeks later.

 

He was ...sadly....too sick, too frail to be on a ship.

 

The thought of him on the Triumph?? Unthinkable IMHO

 

To be honest (and politcally incorrect) I think there is a certain % of people who should not even go on cruises....of course here the armchair docs will say "yes, go on the cruise right after surgery"..."go on the cruise between chemo treatments" ....

It's no wonder they have all the airlifts and turn the ship around to take back sick people

[WCAB]

I don't think there is an answer to this. If like me, nothing ever happened, all I have is the fondest of memories but everyone is right, I would have felt terrible if something happened and they had a problem. El Henry, I cannot fault you for taking that position, either.

[Cruisin'Doc]

OP - I think we might want to consider the difference between elderly and frail versus sick, which I think might be more to the point.

 

Elderly and frail is not a death sentence. Do they get around, hop on one foot, or dance a jig every morning? Of course not. None of us do as we age (or at least not very gracefully!). Elderly and frail just means we should take extra precautions. Have a supply of proper medications, don't push it with extended excursions, etc. In essence, the same things you would do for anyone who is aging. Being in this 'cateogry' does not mean they are about to fall over at any minute... it just means to be more cautious, the same as you would with a small child, an individual with diabetes, etc.

 

Sick is a different situation. Those who are in ill health who may not be in a position to travel safely.

 

Here's my perspective. We cannot (and do not) live in a plastic bubble, and we cannot live our lives waiting for the 'worst' to happen. If we do...what memories will there be to look back upon? Sitting at home, twiddling our thumbs, waiting to die? Or great adventures and memories with our families?

 

The chances of a disaster happening are small (in comparison with it NOT happening). On the VERY off-chance that it should, be as prepared for it as you can in advance (ie. proper supply of medication, etc) and work your way through it - it's all any of us can do. After all, a disaster can hit anywhere at any time.

 

To share - my father died on March 2, 2008. We knew for nine days he had cancer. In January, he and my mother were on a cruise I gave them for Christmas, and my mother still says it was the best one they had ever been on...I was not with them on that trip, but knowing how much joy he had on that cruise, his last one, is something that no amount of money could ever replace for me. As well, I take my mother generally on two cruises a year. She is 67, has some level of restricted mobility due to bad knees, etc. But, she loves going and we love our time together. We go at her pace, because to me...the trip is about us being together anyway. The memories we are creating will be with me long after she is gone. So if we go a little more slowly or don't hit every single activity, so what? It's OUR vacation.

 

So, there is no right or wrong answer to this question. Everyone will have a different opinion. Ultimately, you have to decide for yourself are they elderly and frail or sick, and what that means to you and the rest of the family on the trip.

[boaterette]

I was just talking with my mom who is 91 about the triumph. She said she wouldn't have had a problem being on the ship. We cruise several times a year together. She is blind from macular degeneration. But we always book a balcony room. I don't think I would book anything else with her though. We always take enough medication for an extra week because we like to be prepared. If she were sick it would be another story and we would not cruise. But just because she is old and frail no problem.

[pbsteve]

My grandparents are in their 90's now, and have recently started thinking of not cruising anymore, they've already cut down on traveling, they used to go on a great trip every year, but they've gone to once every other year, as they know they're getting older. I think my grandfather who has now broken a hip, arm, and leg while on vacation in other countries is the main reason. As we age, we become more prone to injury, and having that happen away from home can be very difficult, not just getting home, but having to deal with no support system.

[amarvel]

Ultimately' date=' you have to decide for yourself are they elderly and frail or sick, and what that means to you and the rest of the family on the trip.[/quote']

 

^^^ this. Everyone has a different level of frail. It would be difficult for the cruise lines to determine who should and should not travel. But I do agree we have to be diligent ourselves to determine whether ourselves or someone we are traveling with can make the trip.

 

I cruised twice with my grandma when she was 70 and 72 and she was slower getting around and didn't always get off at the port, but she had no trouble doing ship activities and we made some wonderful family memories.

 

But we are going on a family cruise this summer and thought about going with family members who will be 89....but we all came to the conclusion that they are too frail to make the trip since they may be too frail to do even the ship activities.

[BeachChik]

If they are elderly I don't see why they would t be ok. However if it is someone sickly that may have serious medical issues I would probably skip the cruise and do a land vacation. At least on land you can get to a hospital or medical facility if needed. While cruise ships do have medical staff, you are essentially trapped on the ship and would have to be helicoptered off in an emergency.

 

I think this is my biggest issues with all the triumph threads saying it was no big deal. Yes for a 20-30 something person they are right. Probably not that big a deal. But what about the small children, the elderly or those with medical issues. This type of experience would be difficult for them to endure for days.

[CRZCRAZY]

I took my wife on a weekend cruise between chemo treatments and other medical work, the only time we could get free was a three day cruise. I even packed meds on ice so I could give her injections onboard. It was the best cruise we ever had, were the "older" couple on the marriage game, and got a beautiful portrait of the two of us.

 

She passed away two months later and I cherish every moment we spent together on that cruise.

 

Take every chance to enjoy life, you never know when it will be gone.

[Cruisin'Doc]

I took my wife on a weekend cruise between chemo treatments and other medical work, the only time we could get free was a three day cruise. I even packed meds on ice so I could give her injections onboard. It was the best cruise we ever had, were the "older" couple on the marriage game, and got a beautiful portrait of the two of us.

 

She passed away two months later and I cherish every moment we spent together on that cruise.

 

Take every chance to enjoy life, you never know when it will be gone.

 

Thank you for sharing, and I'm so glad you have such a wonderful memory.

[Cyn7]

To be honest (and politcally incorrect) I think there is a certain % of people who should not even go on cruises....of course here the armchair docs will say "yes, go on the cruise right after surgery"..."go on the cruise between chemo treatments" ....

It's no wonder they have all the airlifts and turn the ship around to take back sick people

 

Funny you should make this analogy.

 

I was diagnosed with breast cancer on Aug 24, 2012. I had a mastectomy of the right breast and removal of all the lymph nodes on that side on Sept 4, 2012 and had to have a second surgery on the same side on Sept 12, 2012.

 

From the diagnosis, I told my doctor that I didn't care what he had to do, he had better get it done because I WAS NOT under any circumstances going to miss my cruise scheduled on Sept 22, 2012.

 

In the doctor's office on Thursday Sept 22 for him to remove the last drain tube and we left to drive to Miami the following morning.

 

I did not miss my cruise and although I wasn't 100%, I still did 2 excursions and enjoyed myself. I did get a lot of rest and didn't even go ashore in 2 ports.

 

Chemo started in October and I take my last chemo this month on the 27th. I don't know if I would have went while doing chemo though.

[29forever]

OP - I think we might want to consider the difference between elderly and frail versus sick' date=' which I think might be more to the point. .........

 

 

[/quote']

 

Agree!

We leave next week for our cruise with our Granny to celebrate her 100th birthday! Looking forward to every moment spent with her. She still cruises once a year, plays bingo weekly and still lives at home!

Oh and don't even try to beat her at a game of scrabble! :D

 

Is she a little slower? Absolutely! But she is worth the wait!

[MrPete]

The recent fire on the Triumph got me to thinking. As my parents became elderly and gave up long distance road trips it became a yearly event to plan a family cruise. My Mom and Dad loved it but on the last cruise they were both pretty frail and did require family assistance to maneuver around the ship and they cut back on the excursions, spending time on our balcony while the rest of us were out and about. We never envisioned an accident or how they would fare if something happened like happened on the Triumph. Since they usually booked inside cabins, this event would have been very difficult for them due to their physical limitations. I see kids all the time with their senior parents and it is a great way to bond and is the basis of some of my fondest memories but wonder if I was being naive to not consider the risks.

 

You're not naive, but you have to pay special attention, or seek special attention, to what the safety procedures are.

 

I brought my 86 year old GMIL with us, and paid special attention to what became relatively routine to us, and madfe sure she CLEARLY knew what to do if we were separated and something happened, and to ASK if needed.

[n6uqqq]

[Griller]

My 86 year old Mom loves longer Princess cruises but with the high incidence of Noro or similar on that line we have had to give up on booking her on Princess as a bad bout of Noro could finish her off, she is a bit frail.

And the Triumph incident would have been very hard for her to cope with as well, might not have been survivable for her.

[sharecruises]

Some of you are missing the point here : what if a Triumph type disaster happened to frail/sick people?? and how did the frail/sick cope on Triumph??

 

There are 4 ships *soon to be 2 more..with "safe return to port" capacity..ie, 2 engine rooms, back up system...these are the newest ships out there...apparently this is too hard to retrofit on most ships...but it is mandatory for ships that began construction July 2010 or later.

 

Breeze, NCL Breakaway, 2 MSC ships (and 2 more being modified)...and that's it. Allure and Oasis have 2 engine rooms but not the full "return to port' system.

 

It means : if one goes down, the other takes over, and has enough power to keep basic systems on, and ship can get itself back to closest port at 50% speed.

 

So seriously IF you are taking a frail/sick person you might want to consider a ship with this built in. Adding this or retrofitting is too expensive on most and is NOT happening. Breeze, Breakaway, Divina , Preozia, and soon 2 more MSC.

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=5201

[jkjmt]

Some of you are missing the point here : what if a Triumph type disaster happened to frail/sick people?? and how did the frail/sick cope on Triumph??

 

There are 4 ships *soon to be 2 more..with "safe return to port" capacity..ie, 2 engine rooms, back up system...these are the newest ships out there...apparently this is too hard to retrofit on most ships...but it is mandatory for ships that began construction July 2010 or later.

 

Breeze, NCL Breakaway, 2 MSC ships (and 2 more being modified)...and that's it. Allure and Oasis have 2 engine rooms but not the full "return to port' system.

 

It means : if one goes down, the other takes over, and has enough power to keep basic systems on, and ship can get itself back to closest port at 50% speed.

 

So seriously IF you are taking a frail/sick person you might want to consider a ship with this built in. Adding this or retrofitting is too expensive on most and is NOT happening. Breeze, Breakaway, Divina , Preozia, and soon 2 more MSC.

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=5201

 

Didn't know this. Thanks for sharing. Very valuable information for at risk travelers.

[jkjmt]

OP - I think we might want to consider the difference between elderly and frail versus sick' date=' which I think might be more to the point.

 

Elderly and frail is not a death sentence. Do they get around, hop on one foot, or dance a jig every morning? Of course not. None of us do as we age (or at least not very gracefully!). Elderly and frail just means we should take extra precautions. Have a supply of proper medications, don't push it with extended excursions, etc. In essence, the same things you would do for anyone who is aging. Being in this 'cateogry' does not mean they are about to fall over at any minute... it just means to be more cautious, the same as you would with a small child, an individual with diabetes, etc.

 

Sick is a different situation. Those who are in ill health who may not be in a position to travel safely.

 

Here's my perspective. We cannot (and do not) live in a plastic bubble, and we cannot live our lives waiting for the 'worst' to happen. If we do...what memories will there be to look back upon? Sitting at home, twiddling our thumbs, waiting to die? Or great adventures and memories with our families?

 

The chances of a disaster happening are small (in comparison with it NOT happening). On the VERY off-chance that it should, be as prepared for it as you can in advance (ie. proper supply of medication, etc) and work your way through it - it's all any of us can do. After all, a disaster can hit anywhere at any time.

 

To share - my father died on March 2, 2008. We knew for nine days he had cancer. In January, he and my mother were on a cruise I gave them for Christmas, and my mother still says it was the best one they had ever been on...I was not with them on that trip, but knowing how much joy he had on that cruise, his last one, is something that no amount of money could ever replace for me. As well, I take my mother generally on two cruises a year. She is 67, has some level of restricted mobility due to bad knees, etc. But, she loves going and we love our time together. We go at her pace, because to me...the trip is about us being together anyway. The memories we are creating will be with me long after she is gone. So if we go a little more slowly or don't hit every single activity, so what? It's OUR vacation.

 

So, there is no right or wrong answer to this question. Everyone will have a different opinion. Ultimately, you have to decide for yourself are they elderly and frail or sick, and what that means to you and the rest of the family on the trip.[/quote']

 

 

I agree.

 

We vacationed every year at Easter with my parents. My mom passed away 12 years ago but we continued to take my dad. Last Easter on vacation at 79 with me and my husband and his two grandchildren, he had a stroke and died at his favorite place…Myrtle Beach, SC.

[MissMeggieMurphy]

i think so much about cruising, as in any vacation, is about how much someone copes with responsibility and the added stress of both the very young and the very old. no way in the world would i cruise with babies or small children. you can call me selfish and mean and flame me to high heaven but i don't think that the added responsibility of making sure they are well cared for would allow me to really enjoy my cruise.

 

the same with traveling with those with a medical condition or the elderly who no longer can be on their own in a strange environment 24/7. we did sail with my grandparents when my grandfather was in the early stages of dementia but grandmom was the responsible person since she dealt with it every day. but even then it was mentally taxing on the rest of us, especially when he was fast as lightening and could disappear in an instant, the same as many small children. also he was the guy with the spoon in the buffet line, and even though it was an insult to him we had to finally just fill his plates for him.

 

my mom is getting to the point that she no longer wants to do the excursions. for her a cruise is now about filling her kindle with all her favorite books and her sitting in the shade relaxing with her drink of the day. she is now planning an AI where she has a personal butler, a limo driver, and meals brought to her hide-a-way and the golf clubs are staying home. my uncle gave up cruising this year because he refuses to pack a suitcase with all his medical paraphernalia. he's looking forward to day trips to the lake for some trolling for that elusive bass that keeps getting away.

 

for me, I'll stop cruising when I can no longer do stairs, hold my bladder, or my medications take up more space than my make-up, or my diet becomes restrictive beyond watching my additional salt and taking it easy on the coffee.

 

i just don't expect a cruise line or its staff to do anything out of the ordinary for me and my loved ones. no baby sitting, no special meals, no power chairs or wheel chairs. for me i cruise with people who can clean up after themselves, carry a plate and serve themselves in the buffet, get from point A to point B with no assistance, can stay in a cabin unsupervised, and can get all their personal stuff on and off the ship by themselves. if they can't do that they its too early to start them or cruising has passed them by. flame away.

[Bashlin]

The recent fire on the Triumph got me to thinking. As my parents became elderly and gave up long distance road trips it became a yearly event to plan a family cruise. My Mom and Dad loved it but on the last cruise they were both pretty frail and did require family assistance to maneuver around the ship and they cut back on the excursions, spending time on our balcony while the rest of us were out and about. We never envisioned an accident or how they would fare if something happened like happened on the Triumph. Since they usually booked inside cabins, this event would have been very difficult for them due to their physical limitations. I see kids all the time with their senior parents and it is a great way to bond and is the basis of some of my fondest memories but wonder if I was being naive to not consider the risks.

 

Is it on their bucket list?

 

Sent from my Galaxy 3S

[MrPete]

i think so much about cruising, as in any vacation, is about how much someone copes with responsibility and the added stress of both the very young and the very old. no way in the world would i cruise with babies or small children. you can call me selfish and mean and flame me to high heaven but i don't think that the added responsibility of making sure they are well cared for would allow me to really enjoy my cruise.

 

the same with traveling with those with a medical condition or the elderly who no longer can be on their own in a strange environment 24/7. we did sail with my grandparents when my grandfather was in the early stages of dementia but grandmom was the responsible person since she dealt with it every day. but even then it was mentally taxing on the rest of us, especially when he was fast as lightening and could disappear in an instant, the same as many small children. also he was the guy with the spoon in the buffet line, and even though it was an insult to him we had to finally just fill his plates for him.

 

my mom is getting to the point that she no longer wants to do the excursions. for her a cruise is now about filling her kindle with all her favorite books and her sitting in the shade relaxing with her drink of the day. she is now planning an AI where she has a personal butler, a limo driver, and meals brought to her hide-a-way and the golf clubs are staying home. my uncle gave up cruising this year because he refuses to pack a suitcase with all his medical paraphernalia. he's looking forward to day trips to the lake for some trolling for that elusive bass that keeps getting away.

 

for me, I'll stop cruising when I can no longer do stairs, hold my bladder, or my medications take up more space than my make-up, or my diet becomes restrictive beyond watching my additional salt and taking it easy on the coffee.

 

i just don't expect a cruise line or its staff to do anything out of the ordinary for me and my loved ones. no baby sitting, no special meals, no power chairs or wheel chairs. for me i cruise with people who can clean up after themselves, carry a plate and serve themselves in the buffet, get from point A to point B with no assistance, can stay in a cabin unsupervised, and can get all their personal stuff on and off the ship by themselves. if they can't do that they its too early to start them or cruising has passed them by. flame away.

 

And then there are some of us where vacationing is not about ME, but US.

 

I can't imagine vacationing wthout the ones I wish to vacation with, primarily the beings I have brought into this world.

 

I brought DD to Europe when she was 7 months old, and haven't looked back since. It's been a true joy. And completely stressless.