Medical emergencies happen every day. Some of these we can prepare for; others are more difficult to predict.

I can say with relative certainty that this month, someone on a yacht will get cut, will fall, will get sick, will have chest pains, and will have difficulty breathing.

For many of these emergencies, we can prepare ourselves with the proper equipment (a good quality medical kit, a new AED) and training.

Other emergencies are difficult to predict, but planning and preparation can help. Here are a few disasters from the past decade.

A tsunami in Southeast Asia killed 226,408 people in December 2004.

An earthquake in Haiti killed 222,570 in January 2010.

A cyclone in Nargis (formerly Burma) killed 138,336 in May 2008.

A heatwave hit Europe in the summer of 2003 and killed 72,210.

An earthquake and resulting tsunami hit Japan earlier this year and killed 18,000.

In the United States, there have been 1,410 tornadoes reported already this year. About 500 people have been killed by tornadoes in this country this year alone.

When a disaster occurs, it can overwhelm local emergency medical services. Under normal conditions on dry land, we can pick up the phone and dial 911 and within 8-12 minutes, help arrives.

But at sea, or during a disaster, help is not 10 minutes away. In these cases, you are the one providing emergency medical care. Are you prepared?

Take a few minutes and think about how prepared you are for a disaster. Are your emergency medical first-aid skills up to date?

If you were the victim, who around you has the proper training and skills necessary to treat you? If you fell and hurt your back, would your crew mates know how to move you? If you were impaled with something, would they leave the item in or pull it out? If you were seizing, would they put a spoon in your mouth or leave you alone?

Each month, I cover these topics and in each of my classes we train crew in the proper way to assist injured people. If you don’t feel comfortable either in your skills or in those of the crew around you, now is the time to learn. Now is the time to schedule a class.

Once your CPR and first-aid skills are up to date, take a close look at your equipment. Do you have the right equipment and supplies to treat medical emergencies?

As the rescuer and first aid provider, the most important item in your first aid kit is your Personal Protective Equipment.  You will want to make certain you have easy access to medical exam gloves, safety glasses and a CPR barrier mask. These protect you from bloodborne pathogens.

Now look at the rest of your emergency medical first aid kit. Go through it. Do you know what each item does? Is everything up to date?

I have seen some really bad kits with old brown bandages and medications that expired in the 1980s. I have also seen some where the salespeople sold the captains things that they have no idea how to use and really have no need for.

This is why I always ask for the ship’s medical kit when I am onboard teaching a class. It allows me to review what the crew has to work with, what else may be required, what has expired, and what is no longer necessary and should be discarded.

For those living or traveling in areas that are prone to hurricanes, that season has just begun. You should start your hurricane preparation by visiting my Web site, www.HurricaneFirstAid.com, for a listing of things you can do to prepare.

Remember, failing to plan is a plan for failure.

About the Author

Keith Murray

Columnist

Keith Murray, a former Florida firefighter EMT, is the owner of The CPR School, a CPR, AED and first-aid training company that provides onboard training for yacht captains and crew. Contact him at +1-561-762-0500 or keith@theCPRschool.com.