Receiving medical care can be a topic of life or death for seafarers who fall ill while working on ships.
The Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization ( IMO ) and the Director-General of the International Labour Organization ( ILO ) have issued a joint statement calling for port and coastal States to facilitate the prompt debarkation of seafarers for aesculapian care as a matter of “ animation or death ” ; to prioritize seafarers for COVID-19 vaccination ; and to designate seafarers as key workers, recognizing seafarers ‘ valuable contribution to world trade.
In the joint statement ( round Letter No.4204/Add.42 ), IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim and ILO Director-General Guy Rider say seafarers are facing difficulties in accessing medical care and highlight the “ moral obligation to ensure seafarers can access aesculapian concern ashore without delay, whenever they need it, and to extend medical aid on board should the indigence get up by allowing qualify doctors and dentists to visit ships. It is besides important that a aesculapian appraisal be conducted anterior to administering any treatment, which could include telemedicine assessment provided by international health providers. ” “ Receiving such wish can be a matter of life or death for seafarers who fall ill while working on ships. The international community should do its farthermost to support those who have maintained the global provide chain under pandemic conditions over the last 18 months and keep carry on much despite enormous personal hardships, ” say the Director-General of ILO and the Secretary-General of IMO. The joint statement notes that “ about 14 months after issuing the ‘Recommendations for port and coastal States on the prompt debarkation of seafarers for aesculapian caution ashore during the COVID-19 pandemic ‘ ( round Letter No.4204/Add.23 ), seafarers are still struggling to access such wish when needed. advocacy from Member States, the maritime industry, social partners and seafarers themselves has once again brought the pledge of seafarers to the fore. ” As enshrined in ILO ‘s 2006 Maritime Labour Convention ( MLC 2006 ), it is incumbent upon Member States to ensure seafarers onboard ships in their territory are given access to checkup facilities ashore, should they require immediate medical care, including dental care ( See the Resolution concerning the execution and hardheaded application of the MLC, 2006 during the COVID-19 pandemic, adopted by the Special Tripartite Committee of the MLC, 2006 in April 2021. ) The legal obligation to render aid to seafarers in distress, including checkup aid, is besides an intrinsic part of IMO conventions, namely the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea ( SOLAS ) ; the International Convention on MAritme Search and Rescue ( SAR ) ; and the Convention on the Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic ( FAL ).
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The joint instruction once again urge Governments to recognize the strategic importance of the maritime sector and, in line with UN General Assembly settlement A/75/17 adopted on 1 December 2020, to designate seafarers as key workers and to treat them as such by providing entree to medical caution. circular Letter No.4204/Add.35/Rev.7 contains the stream list of IMO Member States having notified IMO that they have designated seafarers ( and other nautical personnel, as allow ) as identify workers.
Governments are urged to prioritize seafarers in their home COVID-19 vaccination programmes, in accord with the WHO SAGE Roadmap for Prioritizing uses of COVID-19 Vaccines in the Context of Limited Supplies, as updated on 16 July 2021, and to offer
WHO-approved Emergency Use Listing ( EUL ) vaccines to ensure their inoculation status is recognized internationally. The list of WHO-approved EUL vaccines is accessible at hypertext transfer protocol : //extranet.who.int/pqweb/vaccines/covid-19-vaccines The ILO and IMO heads besides encourage Governments to recognize the role other marine personnel play in facilitating ball-shaped trade and, wherever possible, to besides vaccinate them on a priority footing. information received by IMO and ILO indicates that 24 countries have thus far answered the clarion call by implementing seafarer inoculation programmes, or signaling their captive to do sol, in destine ports within their jurisdictions. A list of these countries and their component ports is accessible at hypertext transfer protocol : //icma.as/vaccines/
The joint instruction says : “ We are highly grateful to these countries but urge more to step forth to accelerate, in particular, the vaccination of seafarers serving external ship. Government agencies, diligence, parturiency and mariner benefit groups continue to work assiduously to facilitate and/or deliver vaccines for seafarers. however, a lot remains to be done. We shall continue to work with our baby UN agencies, Governments and diligence bodies to address the ongoing needs of seafarers and to safeguard their basic rights, so that they may continue to facilitate the ball-shaped economy. ”
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