Swine Flu hysteria ebbs; cruise lines returning to Mexico

As reason has gradually displaced the initial irrational hysteria about Swine Flu (yes, we know we're supposed to call it H1N1 Flu now, but choose not to), the cruise lines that had canceled their Mexico ports of call are now trickling back.

To be fair to the cruise lines, they really had no choice but to pull out of Mexico when the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommended avoiding non-essential travel there on April 27.

But since then, as it became clear that Swine Flu has more in common with a garden-variety flu than some mutant killer disease, CDC rescinded its no-go recommendation and replaced it with the same common sense guidelines one should follow to avoid illness at any time. The #1 rule? Wash your hands often with soap and water. You can see the rest of the suggestions here. CDC still says that those at high risk for complications from any flu might want to avoid Mexico, like the very young or old.

At any rate, Carnival Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean Cruise Line are already stopping in Mexico again, while other cruise lines will return throughout the rest of the year as ships are repositioned back into Caribbean or Mexican Riviera service for the fall and winter.

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Cruise ship doctors are independent from the cruise line, says Florida Supreme Court

The Florida Supreme Court overturned a lesser court, and concluded that cruise lines cannot be held liable for negligence on the part of ships' doctors, who generally are independent contractors. The case about a 1997 incident involved a woman with misdiagnosed appendicitis causing a rupture, infection and sterility.

The patient felt that the cruise line bore responsibility for the onboard physician's malpractice. The cruise line argued that the onboard doctor is an independent contractor, not under the supervision of the cruise line.

We can see both sides of this one. As a cruise passenger, we might think the cruise line is responsible for overseeing medical care. But on the other hand, they're a cruise line, not a medical organization, and can't be expected to exercise medical judgement. It would be like expecting a hotel to accept liability for a doctor they helped track down for an ill guest.

At any rate, the court's reasoning was that federal maritime law does not allow cruise lines to be held liable for their onboard independent medical professionals.

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Carnival Liberty suspected Norovirus outbreak sickens 700

In the largest case of shipboard gastrointestinal illness in our recent memory, 700 Carnival Liberty passengers and crew members fell ill during a 19-night trans-Atlantic voyage from Rome that arrived in Fort Lauderdale on November 19. The ship was then held in port for 2 days of intense disinfection, shortening its subsequent cruise.

The unusual number of ill people prompted experts from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to join the ship for its last leg into Ft. Lauderdale from St. Maarten. Together with Carnival, they were working to find out how the bug got onto the ship and whether any shipboard procedures were neglected or new ones needed to be introduced. While two passengers admitted having been ill prior to boarding the Liberty in Rome, they're not proven to be the cause yet. The cruise lines have an outstanding cooperative relationship with the CDC thanks to the industry's aggressive efforts to keep ships clean, healthy and safe.

The bug will likely turn out to be Norovirus, a super-contagious virus that causes vomiting and diarrhea but generally runs its course within 24 hours will no lasting ill effect. Norovirus occurs everywhere, not just on cruise ships, but since only cruise lines are required to report outbreaks to the CDC, it's wrongly perceived as "the cruise ship virus."

Standard procedure in the cruise industry quarantines any crew member or passenger with Norwalk-like symptoms for about 24 hours in their stateroom to contain the problem. The ship also institutes stepped-up cleaning of everything from hand railings to casino chips. In the unusual extreme case like the Liberty's, the ship gets extra disinfection in port including fogging.

According to the CDC, people can afford themselves substantial protection by following a few simple steps:

• Wash hands frequently and thoroughly, especially after using the restroom and before eating or preparing food.
  
• Immediately remove and wash clothing or linens that were used during an episode of illness.
• Throroughly clean all surfaces that an ill person contacted with a bleach-based cleaner
• Keep the bathroom clean.
  

Also two passengers died during this ill-fated voyage, due to natural causes and not because of the virus, according to Carnival.

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