Incidence of illnesses and injuries at sea

In the absence of much research about what problems sailors face while at sea, a group of medical students from Norway, Germany and India have launched a study to find the incidence of illness and injury on board non dinghy sailing vessels, as well as to evaluate medical preparedness, with focus on medical kits and manuals.

To date, most of the information on illness and injury among sailors is confined to the more elite competitive aspects of the sport, such as the Olympics or the America’s Cup, as well to dinghy sailors who usually always sail with rescue and support personnel on hand. Both these groups are subjected to a high degree of risk and are not representative of recreational yacht sailors.

From their base at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, this research has been undertaken as part of their bachelor thesis, and they are hopeful to be providing valuable information to the global community of sailors.

Whether you go out on the water for the day or you have completed the World ARC, they would appreciate hearing your stories in their survey. It takes 15 minutes to fill… click here.

For additional information on their study… click here.