Pursuing Medical Malpractice Claims Against Doctors on Cruise Ships

When you look through brochures or explore web sites that advertise ocean cruise vacations, there are tons of pictures of beautiful destinations to where the ships embark. In so doing, you may be surprised at how many amenities are offered on board the ships that are featured in the advertising materials. From multiple swimming pools and water parks to miniature golf courses, shopping, spas, gourmet restaurants and more, cruise ships seem to have everything that a person could possibly want or need for a wonderful vacation experience at sea.

If you have gone on a cruise in the past, it may come as a shock to learn that up until about a month ago, you could not have pursued a claim for damages if the medical professionals on a cruise ship committed medical malpractice against you. Fortunately, this has changed recently, in light of an opinion by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeal. Now, passengers who are injured by the negligence of doctors on a cruise ship may hold the cruise line responsible for their injuries.

This important change comes from the November 10, 2014 decision in the case of Franza v. Royal Caribbean Cruises, LTD. The case involved an elderly gentleman who fell and hit his head while the cruise ship that he was traveling on was docked in Bermuda. He was brought onto the ship and was treated in its medical center. While there, the doctors and nurses there failed to provide him with the care that could have saved his life. No one on the ship examined the man until his credit card information was obtained. The doctor did not meet with him for four hours, and the nurse who examined him did not conduct any diagnostic scans or assess him for head trauma. He was released, and unfortunately, died a week later as a result of his injuries.

The decision in Franza means that cruise lines can no longer claim immunity from responsibility for the actions of the medical professionals that they employ to care for their passengers on board their ships. It is an important change which provides cruise ship passengers and their families with the necessary ability to pursue a claim for damages in the event that the medical care that they or their loved ones receive on board a cruise ship is provided in a negligent manner.

Passengers on cruise ships and their families deserve the same quality of medical care as those who are treated in hospitals and medical facilities on land. If you or someone that you know has been injured or killed because they received negligent medical care while on board a cruise ship, call the Tennessee Medical Malpractice Attorneys at Bailey & Greer, PLLC today. You can schedule a consultation with us by calling 901-680-9777.

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