All aboard for a healthy trip

Ian Youngman reviews the failure of early ventures into “cruise ship medical tourism” and latest attempt to deliver healthcare onboard.

A few years ago various business ventures sought to bring in medical tourism on cruise ships as a logical mixing of the three popular areas of medical tourism, health and wellness and cruising.

Various plans emerged to refit a cargo or cruise ship, for medical tourism. But the cost of buying and refitting a vessel was high. And questions arose about the length of time a cruise or cargo ship could sit in the ocean before needing to come back to shore. Fresh water capacity, wastewater capacity, and other supply / maintenance concerns arose.

Large vessels are designed for movement and delivery rather than continuous occupation, so could they be relied upon to sit in one place safely? Safety and regulatory standards meant that they have to keep moving, and get an annual survey and inspection in dry dock.

One plan argued that using the existing hospitality afforded by modern cruise ships, the political advantages of location outside of any government’s Exclusive Economic Zone, could offer hospital care to patients. Operating in offshore waters outside of any jurisdiction, a medical cruise ship could offer equivalent cost savings to the services offered by foreign health care providers, but at the increased levels of comfort and accommodation one would expect of a modern cruise vessel. Costs meant that the idea failed to get off the ground.

Another idea was to have cruise ships retrofitted to provide a state-of-the-art facility to deliver medical care and simple surgery. It also failed to progress.

The challenges for cruise ship medical tourism

Being offshore meant problems in getting doctors to stay afloat for weeks, and that the doctors would struggle to get professional negligence cover. But, would the authorities allow it to dock to collect passengers or would they have to be flown in by helicopter? It is one thing having a doctor for emergencies on a cruise ship, but for emergencies they medevac to hospitals.

Four problems that ventures on using ships offshore failed to solve:

• Huge insurance costs
• Surveying
• Storms
• Supplies

Adding medical care to the equation means problems of legal jurisdiction, quality of doctors, emergencies etc. Unless ship surveyors and marine insurers and the flag country agree that it is fit for purpose, bearing in mind the use and location, the rest is a non-starter. So the plans for seagoing medical treatment failed.

Cruising is now very popular and many ships offer a range of health and fitness activities to cruise passengers, but very much as an after thought and lower down the scale of importance than the range of cocktails on offer.

A new approach

2017 will see a new venture bringing health tourism to the fore. Seabourn, an ultra-luxury cruise line, in partnership with The Onboard Spa by Steiner, has created a programme offering customers a spa and wellness experience that integrates physical, social, environmental and spiritual well-being. The new Spa and Wellness with Dr. Andrew Weil programme claims to be the first-ever of its kind at sea.

The onboard wellness guide leads the activities of classes and gatherings throughout the voyage. The programme will be rolled out throughout the entire Seabourn fleet in 2017, with the last one being Seabourn Ovation in Spring 2018.

Dr. Weil will sail on a different Seabourn ship each year where he will deliver a 60-minute lecture for guests and will also offer smaller informal group discussions. A separate team of wellness experts will also make regular visits to spa facilities onboard.

A daily batch of meditation and yoga classes will include ones that focus on various physical issues, such as yoga to heal back and joint pain, headaches and body alignment, as well as yoga to enhance creativity, mental focus and happiness. Classes will focus on mind, body and spirit over a period of seven days, and will change daily with a new theme.

Included are a range of mind and body seminars designed to educate customers on philosophies and practices that enhance well-being and increase the awareness of connection between mind, body, environment and wellness.

Many Seabourn cruise ships are adult only and it seems that, with some topics included that refer to combating ageing, it can be assumed that the key target market is those of mature years, often retired, and with plenty of money.

So sea based medical treatment never took off, but luxury sea health and wellness cruising looks to become a profitable niche.