MSC Cruises First to Introduce Distance Care for Children on Board

MSC Cruises has become the first cruise line in the world to offer guests a 24/7 paediatric telemedicine service on board, through a partnership with the Giannina Gaslini Institute, in Genoa, Italy, a world-class centre of excellence in paediatric medicine.

 
MSC Cruises will install new technology across its entire fleet to enable the distance care of children with onshore support from specialists at the Gaslini Institute.

Once operational, MSC Cruises’ onboard doctors will be able to consult specialist paediatricians at any time to seek a second opinion or carry out procedures such as remote diagnosis, radiology and monitoring.

The service is believed to bring peace of mind to the thousands of families that take cruise holidays every year.

The project was presented this morning in Genoa by the CEO of MSC Cruises, Gianni Onorato, the Director General of the Giannina Gaslini Institute, Paolo Petralia, and the President of the Liguria Region, Claudio Burlando.

Mr Onorato said: “MSC Cruises is a family-owned company and we strongly believe in caring for the health and safety of our guests on board, with particular attention to younger travellers, who can require help and treatment quite different from other age groups.”

Director General of the Gaslini, Paolo Petralia added: “This enables onboard doctors to confirm their diagnoses and treatments using a cutting-edge system of remote image and data transmission.”

The link-up, via satellite, will be available on all MSC Cruises itineraries anywhere on the planet.

The telemedicine technology is managed by Carestream, which has developed a platform to enable requests for distance consultation to be made easily from the remotest locations, allowing Gaslini doctors to move quickly with diagnoses and referrals.

The process is fully computerized, from the consultation request to the response, and respects the highest of safety standards.

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Press Release, July 9th, 2014