Pirate Cruise with DS who needs me to attend

[Mich Mouse]

My six year old is T1D and requires trained adults to manage his disease. It's not possible for me to send him off on a two hour cruise alone. Will Disney allow me to accompany him to mange his medical needs? I really hope so. He wants to go so much.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

1) We are told these are for kids only.
. . . 4-12 years old
. . . potty trained
2) It is meant as a non-adult activity for kiddies.
3) You can ask, but the blurbs on our computers say no adults.

 

[kandb]

I would call and explain the situation. I hope they let you attend. The CM's going are adults, I don't see why it would be a problem for you to go.

 

[Mich Mouse]

1) We are told these are for kids only.
. . . 4-12 years old
. . . potty trained
2) It is meant as a non-adult activity for kiddies.
3) You can ask, but the blurbs on our computers say no adults.

Yes, I understand what the official blurbs say but this is a special needs situation. My son must have trained adult supervision who can administer medication if he has a seizure or passes out. Who would I speak to about this?

 

[SteveMouse]

This was previously discussed in an (old) thread: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2118611.

 

[OurBigTrip]

You should certainly call and ask, but I would expect the answer to be "no".

 

[Allison]

All I can say is I have never heard of this being allowed and I would be pretty confident that kind of information would have been shared here.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

. . . My son must have trained adult supervision who can administer medication if he has a seizure or passes out . . .

1) In-and-by itself, this is a Red Flag for WDW.
2) Consider
. . . the danger of being away from land and something happens
. . . the motion/movement of the boat causing a medical emergency
. . . the panic of the other kids witnessing such an emergency and treatment
. . . the ire of other parents having their kids exposed to such a scene
3) Disney does not like this kind of liability.
4) It is could result in PEL (our phrase for "Permanent Employment for Lawyers").
5) Unfortunately, not all activities are for all people or all circumstances.
6) But, call Guest Service or Guest Relations and ask.

 

[SteveMouse]

1) In-and-by itself, this is a Red Flag for WDW. 2) Consider . . . the danger of being away from land and something happens . . . the motion/movement of the boat causing a medical emergency . . . the panic of the other kids witnessing such an emergency and treatment . . . the ire of other parents having their kids exposed to such a scene 3) Disney does not like this kind of liability. 4) It is could result in PEL (our phrase for "Permanent Employment for Lawyers"). 5) Unfortunately, not all activities are for all people or all circumstances. 6) But, call Guest Service or Guest Relations and ask.

To support the above, the ADA specifically allows for exclusions from accommodation based on safety.

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

I'm not an expert on diabetes but I think that's what the OP meant by T1D but shouldn't they by 6 at lest know some basics after all what does he do at school? Does he really need shots every two hours or can he get by for a little while. Also maybe talk with his doctor about it or even talk to him about it more help him to become independent with it, after all there may be a time when he isn't around you and needs to test and do stuff on his own.

 

[kaytieeldr]

What about taking him on the Pirates & Pals cruise instead? You can absolutely enjoy that with him, and you can be there to tend to him without needing any esmcmxception that it appears likely wouldn't be granted.

 

[Mich Mouse]

I'm not an expert on diabetes but I think that's what the OP meant by T1D but shouldn't they by 6 at lest know some basics after all what does he do at school? Does he really need shots every two hours or can he get by for a little while. Also maybe talk with his doctor about it or even talk to him about it more help him to become independent with it, after all there may be a time when he isn't around you and needs to test and do stuff on his own.

My son requires a 1.1 medical aide at school. He could go the two hours without injections but the problem is the possibility of him having a low blood sugar and his ability to test, treat and correct. Passing out/seizures and other awful stuff are the result of not being proactive with T1D. Too much responsibility for a six year old. The doctors help him to be as independent as possible but right now that means testing with supervision and an adult to guide treatment decisions.

 

[StirlingSilver83]

What about taking him on the Pirates & Pals cruise instead? You can absolutely enjoy that with him, and you can be there to tend to him without needing any esmcmxception that it appears likely wouldn't be granted.

I also agree with taking him on the Pirates and pals cruise. My son had a blast with that and even got to walk to the boat holding captain hooks hand it was soooo cute!

 

[mom2AidanAndEli]

Thing is Disney isn't supposed to ask for medical documentation. They go on your word. So now you say your son needs you there. What's to stop every other parent from claiming the same thing? Now suddenly this "kids only" event has become "kids and parents who need to be there". Just opening up a can of worms. I seriously doubt Disney wants to go there.

 

[Lilliputian]

I think that's just one of those things that not everyone can do. I'm in a similar position because I have children who would love it, but the last I heard is that there is food involved, and their food allergies are too severe for them to do it without me. We have to find other fun things to do.

The reason other adults can't go is because of the other children. All of the Disney employees working with those children have had a thorough background check, and Disney is basically guaranteeing that they're appropriate people to be working with children. They don't know anything about you and can't put you in close quarters with other people's children. It's too risky.

 

[dubskates]

I think that's just one of those things that not everyone can do. I'm in a similar position because I have children who would love it, but the last I heard is that there is food involved, and their food allergies are too severe for them to do it without me. We have to find other fun things to do.

Not to stray to far from the original question, but I just wanted to say that after discussing it with the CMs involved (on the phone beforehand and in person on the dock) we let our severely allergic son take part. They had a safe snack available for him, had him wear a band on his wrist with his multiple allergies and our cell numbers written out, carried his epipens for him and they had a pediatric nurse as one of the CM pirates (not sure if that was planned as a result of our communications, or we just lucked out) - DH and I were nervous the entire time, but he had a blast and was so proud to have gone off on his own.

OP - If it would meet your needs, perhaps you could request a medically-trained CM be part of the crew if one is available?

 

[acebatonfan]

My son requires a 1.1 medical aide at school. He could go the two hours without injections but the problem is the possibility of him having a low blood sugar and his ability to test, treat and correct. Passing out/seizures and other awful stuff are the result of not being proactive with T1D. Too much responsibility for a six year old. The doctors help him to be as independent as possible but right now that means testing with supervision and an adult to guide treatment decisions.

Hi! I am also a T1 diabetic. From your post, it seems like you are concerned that he might go into hypoglycemia while on the cruise. If he is not hypoglycemia unaware or prone to dropping really low really quickly for no reason, it might be possible for him to do the cruise independently by upping his BG target and having him run a little high during the cruise.

First off, is he using an insulin pump or a continuous glucose monitor? If he is using a Dexcom CGM, there is a program (NightScout, I believe) that lets you view your son's BG through your phone. It might be possible for you to have him carry a roll or two of glucose tablets and a cell phone and give him a call and tell him to eat how many glucose tablets if you don't like the way his BG is heading. If he is using an insulin pump, you could temporarily reduce his basal in the hour or so leading up to the cruise and throughout the duration of it. There's also the option to have him eat an uncovered snack before the cruise and let those carbs bring up his BG before he leaves.

I also second the idea of seeing if there is any way the CM could be trained on what to do during a hypoglycemia episode and/or how to administer a glucagon injection. At the very least, it is a good idea to explain to Disney about your concerns and see whether they believe the CMs are capable of handling his medical needs.

 

[LoveMMC]

Not to stray to far from the original question, but I just wanted to say that after discussing it with the CMs involved (on the phone beforehand and in person on the dock) we let our severely allergic son take part. They had a safe snack available for him, had him wear a band on his wrist with his multiple allergies and our cell numbers written out, carried his epipens for him and they had a pediatric nurse as one of the CM pirates (not sure if that was planned as a result of our communications, or we just lucked out) - DH and I were nervous the entire time, but he had a blast and was so proud to have gone off on his own. OP - If it would meet your needs, perhaps you could request a medically-trained CM be part of the crew if one is available?

Love this.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

There are legal reasons why a "children only" event where the kids are supervised by employees won't allow any adults, even adult caretakers of special needs children. As far as having children in "secured" programming with adults present who have not been backgrounded. On the DCL cruises they won't allow any adults in secured children's programming, not even special needs caretakers.

Accommodating an allergy is not exactly the same thing as a child who needs a one on one adult caretaker present in order to participate.

It could be that they will not allow their employees to take medical responsibility for your son, so you should be prepared for that.

The Pirates and Pals cruise is a great alternative and you will be able to accompany him.

 

[kandb]

I originally said you should be able to go OP but as others stated, I can understand why WDW won't let adults go along on a "children only" event. Disney does a thorough check of its employees and sending a strange adult that has no prior background checking, I can understand not allowing it. There are so many things to do with your son. None of my children have ever done the pirate cruise but we did do the pirate dress-up (forgot the name), near Pirates of the Carribean and they loved it. I bought my son a little pirate outfit from amazon that he wore. He had a great time.