Providing student health services at sea: a survey of chief complaints onboard a maritime academy training ship.

OBJECTIVE

The authors describe the epidemiology of infirmary chief complaints aboard a collegiate maritime training ship.

PARTICIPANTS

They assessed patients (N = 646 visits) evaluated by the USTS Enterprise medical department during a 44-day sea term from January to February 2007.

METHODS

The authors conducted a retrospective chart review of infirmary use and extracted information on age, sex, rank, chief complaints, and frequency of visits.

RESULTS

Overall, 646 visits were made. The most common complaints were dermatologic (30.1%): rash, skin infection, laceration, and sunburn. Together, ear, nose, and throat and dermatologic complaints accounted for 57.6% of all visits. Work-related complaints accounted for 12.5% of recorded visits. Compared with the ship population, senior and female cadets had more visits than the average. Port departure days were typically the busiest.

CONCLUSIONS

Among healthy, college-aged cadets at sea, typical primary care constitute comprise the majority of visits.