Medical Advice/Medical Assistance
In the case of a medical emergency concerning an individual person
onboard, this may also be classed as 'urgency'. Medical emergencies fall
into two categories - 'medical advice', and 'medical assistance'
To obtain urgent Medical Advice, you can use urgency priority to
gain speedy connection to a doctor ashore. The doctor will need to know
the symptoms and, if available, the medical history of the patient, and
what medicines you carry - and will 'advise' you on treatment. If it is
decided that the patient must be brought together with a doctor (either
by a medical evacuation ashore, or a doctor taken to the vessel) - this
bringing-together of the patient and the doctor is called 'medical
assistance'
Medical assistance will normally have to be organised by the rescue
authorities ashore, not by the doctor or hospital. (Radio stations providing
medical advice services are listed in the Admiralty List of Radio Signals
Volume 1 - ALRS Vol. 1 - and in the ITU List of Radiodetermination
and Special Service Stations).
In the case of a 'man overboard' where the person is not also in
grave and imminent danger, but you do require assistance with the search,
then that may be classed as urgency. The urgency Signal, for use on
voice channels, is the expression 'PAN PAN' - and may only be used on
the authority of the master, or other person responsible for the vessel at
the time of the problem.
Reminder: In Distress and Urgency situations, you are askingfor assistanceof one sort of another.
SAFETY definition
Where you have 'an important navigational or meteorological
warning' to send.
Author's explanation
Safety messages are intended to warn vessels about safety hazards - likestrong wind warnings and navigation hazards - to help them keep out of trouble.
Safety messages are not used to ask for assistance.
If a vessel is disabled in a shipping lane; weather conditions are such that
the master does not consider the vessel to be in immediate danger; and the engineer
is expected to be able to put things right, without outside assistance, reasonably
qUickly - then a safety message may be used to ask other vessels to keep clear
whilst the problem is fixed.218 THE NAUTICAL INSTITUTE