In this article we look at the treatment of common symptoms that can occur on bare boat sailing charters as well as a fully crewed sailing yacht or overnight sailing yacht charters

Heat exhaustion on boating holidays

Heat exhaustion is the result of excessive loss of body fluid through perspiration. Heat exhaustion is most likely to occur in hot, humid conditions you'll find on a yacht charter in the Whitsunday islands during summer, particularly if prolonged exercise is involved. The young and the old are the most susceptible because their bodies are the least efficient at regulating body temperature.

Signs and symptoms

• feeling of being hot and exhausted
• headache
• faintness and giddiness
• thirst
• nausea
• muscle cramps and weakness
• pale, cold, clammy skin
• heavy sweating
• rapid pulse and breathing
• lack of co-ordination
• confusion and irritability

Action

1. Move the sufferer to a cool place on the bare boat with fresh air.
2. Lay the person down. Loosen his or her clothing and remove any articles that are not needed.
3. Sponge the sufferer with cool water.
4. Encourage the person slowly to drink water, to which a small amount of sugar or glucose may be added.
5. If the person does not recover quickly or vomits, seek medical aid immediately.

Fainting

A person may lose consciousness if there is a temporary drop in the blood supply to the brain. Fainting may be caused by standing still for too long, especially in a hot, stuffy cabin in a charter yacht or on a hot day. It can also be caused by lack of food, exhaustion or an emotional shock.

Signs and symptoms

• unsteadiness
• pale, cold and clammy skin
• yawning
• slow, weak pulse
• blurred vision
• loss of consciousness

Action

1. Lie the person down, with the feet raised.
2. Loosen any tight clothing and make sure there is adequate fresh air. Check that breathing and pulse are normal.
3. Check for any injury or illness.
4. Encourage the person to rest for a while before moving, once consciousness has returned.

Asthma attack during your sailing charter

Asthma is the most common chronic childhood disease in Australia. One in four children and one in ten adults suffer from it. Any child who experiences persistent shortness of breath, wheeziness or cough may be a potential asthmatic and should see a doctor before planning boating holidays in Australia.

During an attack, the muscle surrounding the air tubes goes into spasm, the lining of the tubes becomes swollen and excessive mucus is produced, all of which results in the tubes narrowing, making breathing difficult.

Most asthma sufferers carry their own medication, usually in the form of a metered dose, bronchodilator aerosol, such as Ventolin, commonly known as a 'puffer'. Children under 5 may need to use other devices.

Signs and symptoms

• difficulty breathing
• rapid, shallow breaths
• noisy, wheezy breathing
• coughing
• feeling of tightness in the chest
• difficulty speaking, moving and eating, in severe attacks
• blueness of lips and confusion, in very severe cases

Action

1. Sit the sufferer in a quiet, warm place on the charter boat, away from other people and leaning on a table.
2. Get the sufferer to take 4-6 puffs from their puffer, one after another.
3. Wait 10 minutes and then, if there is not improvement, get him/her to take 4-6 more puffs.
4. If there is still no improvement, get on the radio and call for assistance.
5. While getting to medical help to arrive, continue with the puffer as in steps 2-3. Note that these bronchodilator puffers are completely safe to use and an overdose cannot be given. Oxygen should also be given at this stage if it is available.
6. If the person loses muscle co-ordination and therefore cannot hold the puffer, a 'spacer' can be improvised... squirt the puffer into a tube (a toilet toll will do) so drops of the medication cling to the sides. Hold this over the person's mouth so he or she can inhale from it.

Drug overdose on a yacht charter

This may involve an accidental overdose of a prescription medicine or a potentially lethal dose of narcotics. Urgent medical aid is needed.

Signs and symptoms

• dizziness
• convulsions
• weak pulse
• difficulty breathing
• vomiting
• loss of consciousness
  
  Note that signs and symptoms vary with the type and quantity of drug taken.

Action

1. If the casualty is unconscious, place him or her in the lateral position, check the airway, breathing and pulse, and begin EAR or CPR if necessary, see
   Emergency Techniques
   If breathing and pulse are satisfactory, maintain the unconscious person in the lateral position and continue to monitor breathing and pulse.
2. If the casualty is conscious, do not induce vomiting unless instructed to do so by a doctor.
3. Try to establish which drug was taken, and send any containers, tablets or syringes to the hospital with the casualty. Also send a sample of vomit, in a covered jar.
4. Seek medical aid urgently.

Fish hook injury on boating holidays

An embedded fish hook should be removed by a doctor but, if you are too far from medical help and it is a single-barbed hook just under the skin, you can with care remove it.

Action

1. Do not try to pull the hook out the way it went in. Push the hook out through the skin until the barb can be seen.
2. Cut off the barb.
3. Pull the shank of the hook out through the point of entry. (Alternatively, cut the shank off and pull the hook out by the barb.)
4. Apply a sterile pad to the wound and bandage firmly.
5. A anti-tetanus injection may need to be administered.

A drowning incident during your yacht charter

As a person struggles to stay afloat, water can enter the airway, blocking the air supply. If breathing stops and the oxygen supply to the brain is cut off, permanent brain damage or death can result.

It is therefore vital to start EAR as quickly as possible - as the person is being taken from the water if it is safe to do so.

Prevent drowning by:

• learning to swim
• teaching your children to swim
• making certain children wear a safety harness or life jacket
• learning basic rescue and resuscitation procedures... see our web section: article Boating Holidays with Children

Action

1. Check the airway, clearing it of vomit or any other obstruction, and begin mouth-to-nose EAR: refer to Emergency Techniques while coming ashore in shallow water if it is safe to do so. Do not attempt resuscitation in deep water unless you have been trained to do so or are a very strong swimmer.
2. When the casualty is back on board, place him or her in the lateral position and check the airway again.
3. Start or resume EAR.
4. When the casualty starts breathing again, maintain him or her in the lateral position, covered with a towel or blanket.
5. Seek medical aid immediately. Any person who has lost consciousness or been resuscitated must go to hospital.
6. Monitor the casualty's breathing and pulse closely until you get to medical help, because relapses often occur.