Approved Doctor’s Manual Updated June 15th 2010 FOREWORD This manual details the procedures to be followed to ensure thatmedical assessments for seafarers serving on UK ships are carried out to the standards required by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency in terms of compliance with statutory requirements, good medicalpractice and accountability. The manual has been extensively re-written and for the first time includes new and more detailed guidance on individual medical conditions for MCA Approved Doctors (ADs). These are linked to the medical fitness standards in Merchant Shipping Notice 1822. This guidance also includes a series of frameworks for structured decisiontaking to aid consistency in fitness certification. A standard format has been used and guidance has been prepared for seventeen conditions that are common and which have previously led to questions about the correct issue of fitness certificates. Changes to a number of medical fitness standards in the table in MSN 1822 have been made to enable more seafarers to continue working safely at sea. These changes are either because there is now better information about the prognosis of a condition or because new treatments have improved the outcome of illness. This manual is produced to assist Approved Doctors with examination procedures, the issue of medical fitness certificates and record keeping. It is therefore written using terms that will be understood by health professionals. Although it may also be a useful source of information for seafarers and others in the maritime sector this is not its primary purpose. Instructions for use The manual can be navigated through interactive links which are highlighted in the contents page and text and through the clearly marked navigational buttons. The interactive decision trees in Chapter 4 are designed to aid decision making by clearly showing each logical step in the process of making diagnoses. If you wish to search for topics in particular the search button at the top of the text pages will open a new window. This window can be enlarged by dragging the right hand side of the box, which will then show more information and help to decide the context of the results returned. If you have any difficulty using the manual or have any comments to make please contact the Medical Administration Team at seafarer.s&h@mcga.gov.uk Dr Tim Carter MCA Chief Medical Adviser To read or print the manual click here. |