Cold, drowning and the seasick crew

This module is theory preparation only. First aid is a hands-on skill: do an accredited practical course, and always follow the most current official resuscitation guidance — protocols are reviewed and updated over time. Reviewed against Resuscitation Council UK 2021 Guidelines and NHS guidance, June 2026.

A hypothermic casualty is handled like cargo marked fragile: HORIZONTAL where possible (recovered vertically from the water, cold blood pooled in the limbs can drop the supply to the heart), no rubbing, no rough movement, no alcohol and no direct heat. The treatment is to stop the loss and rewarm gently from the core out: wet clothes off when shelter allows, dry insulation, warm (not hot) sweet drinks only if fully conscious, and warm bodies alongside under shared insulation when the kit runs out. Shivering is encouraging; a cold casualty who has STOPPED shivering yet remains impaired is worse, not better.

Anyone recovered from a drowning incident — even apparently fine — earns medical assessment: inhaled water can declare itself hours later. Manage them lying down, keep them warm, and let the radio doctor make the keep-or-evacuate call. CPR for a drowned casualty follows your current training, with the long-taught emphasis that breathing matters early in drowning: the resuscitation councils teach FIVE initial rescue breaths before chest compressions, because drowning is an oxygen problem first — exactly the kind of protocol detail the practical course keeps current.

And the unglamorous one: seasickness is a SAFETY problem dressed as a joke. A vomiting crew member dehydrates, chills, stops eating, stops thinking, and falls off things. Prevent (medication before departure, the night’s sleep, the gentle first watch), manage (horizon, helmhelmThe steering position (tiller or wheel) — or the person steering.full glossary →, ginger, sips of water, warmth), and watch for the severe case — hours of vomiting with nothing kept down — which deserves the same radio consultation as any other casualty losing fluids.

Heat, allergies and the diabetic crew

This module is theory preparation only. First aid is a hands-on skill: do an accredited practical course, and always follow the most current official resuscitation guidance — protocols are reviewed and updated over time. Reviewed against Resuscitation Council UK 2021 Guidelines and NHS guidance, June 2026.

The sun makes casualties as surely as the cold. HEAT EXHAUSTION — dizzy, nauseous, sweating heavily, mind intact — wants shade, rest, and slow steady fluids with electrolytes. HEATSTROKE — hot, confused or collapsing, possibly no longer sweating — is the emergency: cool aggressively (shade, soaked cloths, fanning) and make the urgency call. The boat brews both quietly: helming under sun, dehydrating gently for hours.

ANAPHYLAXISanaphylaxisSevere, fast allergic reaction — swelling, rash, breathing trouble. The casualty’s adrenaline pen, now, and the radio.full glossary → — severe allergic reaction: rapid swelling of face or throat, widespread rash, wheezing, collapse — runs on minutes. If the casualty carries an adrenaline auto-injector, help them use it NOW (outer thigh, hold as instructed, note the time; a second dose after five-plus minutes if no improvement) and make the urgency call immediately — an airway that is closing offshore is a helicopter conversation. A DIABETIC crew member turning confused, sweaty, irritable or drowsy is treated as LOW blood sugar while conscious: sugar — glucose tablets, juice, sweets — never insulin from a first-aider, and the radio if recovery isn’t quick. Both conditions belong in the skipper’s pre-departure medical questions; neither should be a surprise at sea.