Clinic at Tampa port to expand health care access for ‘hidden’ industry

Some seafarers don’t seek medical treatment because they worry about losing future employment, research says. A new clinic at Port Tampa Bay aims to expand access to treatment for seafarers, many of whom make low wages and come from countries such as the Philippines, India, Indonesia, Russia and Ukraine. The facility will offer preventative care, which can prevent minor health issues from spiraling into serious, life-threatening problems. The University of South Florida College of Nursing opened the clinic in late May and is the first port to launch a nurse-managed clinic in the world. The services will include U.S. Department of Transportation and Coast Guard physicals required for certain jobs, urine drug screens, flu and tetanus vaccinations, primary care visits and treatment for pain and communicable diseases. The clinic will also provide care to other port workers, including longshoremen and harbor pilots.

Opublikowany : 10 miesięcy temu za pomocą Sam Ogozalek w Health

TAMPA — The cargo ship captain arrived in New Orleans feeling ill. He got an antibiotic from an urgent care center, then returned to his vessel. By the time he reached Port Tampa Bay early last year, the Myanmar man was barely conscious and had to be carried off in a stretcher.

He was suffering from necrotizing fasciitis, or “flesh-eating bacteria”.

The man, who was in his 40s, was taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital. He spent months recovering in the Tampa area before heading back to Southeast Asia, said Steve Finnesy, senior chaplain and executive director of the nonprofit Tampa Port Ministries.

Working on cargo ships can be dangerous, and migrant seafarers rarely seek medical care, research says. They work under temporary contracts and some fear that their employers won’t hire them for another voyage if they get injured and incur health care expenses.

A new clinic at Port Tampa Bay aims to expand access to treatment for seafarers, many of whom make low wages and come from countries such as the Philippines, India, Indonesia, Russia and Ukraine, according to Finnesy.

The facility will offer preventative care, which means minor health issues can be caught before spiraling into serious, life-threatening problems, said Eric White, a ship inspector for the International Transport Workers’ Federation, a coalition of trade unions. If the Port Tampa Bay clinic had been in New Orleans, White said he believes the man who contracted flesh-eating bacteria would have fared better.

The University of South Florida College of Nursing in late May opened the clinic at the port. The small, light blue building is tucked away near a shipyard and looming petroleum tanks. Amalie Arena’s namesake, Amalie Oil Co., is just down the road.

Port Tampa Bay, Florida’s largest port by tonnage and land, is the first port to launch a nurse-managed clinic in the world, according to the university. The port authority renovated the building so medical providers could move in.

“Seafarers that might be avoiding going for health care won’t have to,” Finnesy said. “They’ll be able to comfortably go see medical help and not have to worry about any reprisal.”

The workers play a pivotal yet often unseen role in the global economy — and at Port Tampa Bay. The port handled 35 million tons of cargo last year and over 3,100 vessels arrived and departed, said Wade Elliot, the port authority’s senior vice president of marketing and business development.

There are nearly 2 million seafarers on internationally trading merchant ships, and the industry carries around 90% of world trade, according to the International Chamber of Shipping, a trade association for shipowners and operators.

The clinic, which has four exam rooms, will also offer care to other port workers, including longshoremen and harbor pilots. They have demanding jobs that often leave little time for health checkups.

Nurse practitioners will staff the facility with initial hours of 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. three days a week. They aim to expand to five days a week by August, said Duellyn Pandis, director of clinical practice at the College of Nursing. Appointments can be booked online and walk-ins are welcome.

Services will include U.S. Department of Transportation and Coast Guard physicals required for certain jobs, urine drug screens, flu and tetanus vaccinations, primary care visits and treatment for pain and communicable diseases.

Basic health evaluations such as blood pressure checks will probably be free, Pandis said. But the clinic will charge patients for prescribing medications, stitching wounds and conducting mandatory physicals. Prices for services can be as low as $60 and are comparable to routine urgent care centers and walk-in clinics, Pandis said.

Amalie Oil Co. executives recently visited the Port Tampa Bay clinic. The company, which blends motor oils and industrial lubricants, is within walking distance of the clinic and works 24/7 five days a week — but sometimes goes six or even seven days.

“Logistically, it’s amazing,” Jeff Smith, who heads compliance operations for the company, said of the clinic.

But those who live at sea may benefit the most from the facility.

Many cargo ship workers stay aboard for nine months at a time. Half of those that Finnesy meets are from the Philippines. Boats have basic medical supplies but no doctors, he said. Hazards include the potential of falling on slippery surfaces. Social isolation can cause depression, too, Finnesy said. And infections are a known problem. Pandis, from the College of Nursing, recalled a visit she made to a cargo ship in early 2020 for her private travel medicine practice. A seafarer was stricken with malaria.

The International Labour Organization, a United Nations agency, plans to create a database of seafarer deaths. Tracking is set to begin later this year.

Seafarers get a job on a ship, eventually fly home, rest for a couple of months, then take another contract to return to the ocean. Cargo ship crews usually have up to 25 people, and they’re almost always men, Finnesy said. Their wages are low for the U.S. but considered good in their home countries, he said. An International Labour Organization panel in 2022 adopted a minimum wage of $658 U.S. dollars per month for able seafarers. That took effect last year and increased to $666 in January. It will rise to $673 in 2025.

Contracts require that companies pay for seafarers’ health care, said Finnesy, whose organization visits ships and provides access to portable WiFi hotspots so workers can contact family members. His group also drives those with U.S. visas to Walmart and Brandon Exchange, formerly known as the Brandon Mall, so they can enjoy time away from their vessels and buy supplies like shampoo and toothpaste.

But some seafarers don’t seek medical care because they worry about losing future employment, according to research that calls the profession a largely “hidden” industry. White, of the International Transport Workers’ Federation, said crew members are “terrified” of complaining or doing anything that would cost companies even $5. Getting added to a “blacklist,” however, is typically a myth, he said.

Seafarers without U.S. visas, in particular, may be discouraged from accessing health care. They must remain aboard ships. But if they need medical treatment on shore and get permission from the federal government to walk on U.S. soil, companies have to pay for security to escort them, White said.

Finnesy estimated that about 30% of seafarers arriving on cargo ships at the port don’t have a visa.

“Medical care here in the U.S. is very expensive already, then you add on four or five hours of armed guard service to take them to the doctor’s office and back,” Finnesy said. With the clinic at the port so close to ships, “they can probably cut down on much of that expense,” he said.

This could make seafarers who lack visas more willing to seek treatment, White said.

Finnesy’s organization will drive workers from their ships to the clinic.

“It just really brings health care to the crew members that may not otherwise be able to access it,” he said.

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