FYI about CDC inspections of cruise ships

[Luv2Dream]

I subscribe to the magazine "Cruise Travel" and this month they had a very interesting article on ship inspections. When I visited the website they listed for the CDC, I found that site very informative. They not only list the ships scores, but why they scored that way, and what corrective action is being taken by the cruise line involved. Another informative thread was about the outbreak of GI illness. It lists what ships have the outbreak, how many passengers and crew involved and if the CDC has boarded the ship, what type of virus it is. The Magic and the Wonder have both scored 94 on their most recent inspections.

 

[Roemama1]

ARe you able to share the website address?

 

[robby69]

http://www2.cdc.gov/nceh/vsp/vspmain.asp

 

[Luv2Dream]

Thanks, Robby, for answering this before I could get to it. Yes, that is the web address.

 

[tvguy]

And we were constantly being hit by signs on board the Magic about making sure to wash frequently to prevent illness.
There was a card above each sink in the stateroom, and a sign outside each dinning room.
We carried anti-bacterial hand sterilizer and made it through the trip just fine.
This is the first of 6 cruises my wife and I have taken that we did this, we never got sick before, but why take chances.

 

[crisi]

Antibacterials won't do anything about a virus however - and the illness that was shutting down cruise ships was the Norwalk virus.

Frequent hand washing helps keep down bacterial illness - and doesn't hurt with the viruses either. But if the virus is airbourne, handwashing won't keep you from getting it when someone sneezes on the elevator. The deal with cruise ships is that you have a lot of people in tight quarters for long enough for some viruses to incubate.

 

[gizfish]

While taking an oral antibiotic won't help a virus, the liquid hand sanitizers made by Purell, Avon, Bath & Body works and others will kill viruses (including Norwalk, flu and the cold) as well as other germs. The main ingredient is usually alcohol, and that kills most anything on contact.

 

[clarabelle]

Most viruses are not spread through the air they are spread by contact. Handwashing DOES prevent them being spread as well as the alcohol based hand gels.
Here is a little article about hand gel:

http://www.drgreene.org/body.cfm?id=21&action=detail&ref=1667

 

[clarabelle]

Here is another article about Norwalk

http://www.drgreene.org/body.cfm?id=21&action=detail&ref=1150