Obtaining accurate medical information on the casualty and the severity of the injury is often an issue, particularly when English is not the mother tongue of the crew. Often the fishing fleets in the Atlantic are not from home shores.
Which is why declining a task on the basis of sketchy information is a concern. Ideally - as in this case - a shore-based doctor can advise, or in the case of large cruise ships, a doctor is part of the crew. Lacking this, the advice of our own Paramedic is invaluable and helps in the decision making process.
It is ultimately the Commander's (often both pilots are Captains) responsibility to make the go/no go decision but I want to be happy that, either way, the other crew believe we are making the correct decision.
Last edited by Same again; 26th Mar 2017 at 09:16.