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Alison Dewynter
Although I see fewer patients in a day on board ship than when I work shore side, my days are varied and rarely dull.
Alison Dewynter
One of my duties is to provide medical cover to the dive team on board. Quite recently they were tasked to search for a mooring at King Edward Point, which had been lost from the BAS ship the Ernest Shackleton.
The day of the dive dawned grey with rain and wind but even before the diving brief at 1000 hours, skies had cleared and the sea was an incredible shade of emerald green. The day’s tasking was discussed with the Captain during this brief and at 1100 hours the sea boat left HMS Endurance bound for nearby King Edward Point. On board were Leading Diver Dingle; Leading Diver Ellis and Diver Boughen; along with LAPhot Wybrow and LPT Dennis (who were to act as safety numbers) and myself.
The main concerns for divers in Antarctic and Sub-Antarctic water are seal bites, hypothermia and barotrauma. The dive today was going no deeper than 12 metres and the surface water temperature was 2.9 degrees. There is limited space in the sea boat but the medical kit includes dressings, airway adjuncts, hand-held suction and an oxygen cylinder with bag and mask..
My first task at King Edward Point was to make contact with Charlotte, the BAS doctor based at the settlement. Should we have a casualty, her medical facility would be the one we would use as it is closer and well equipped with an XR machine, 12 lead ECG, Bair Hugger and ventilation equipment. It also doesn’t sway, which is something Navy doctors get used to but ship roll can make procedures tricky. Meanwhile Leading Diver Dingle was liaising with the Ernest Shackleton moored at King Edward Point, to find out more about the lost mooring and also to ensure that she was not planning to sail whilst they were under the water just off her bow.
The dive began at 1209 when Leading Diver Ellis entered the water. The rest of us stayed in the boat enjoying the sunshine, which was only slightly marred by a strong gusting wind. The dark mountains of South Georgia covered in pockets of snow surrounded us in the bay. Along the beach elephant seals slept and a baby fur seal yapped at his dad. We ate our bag meals watching the diver’s safety buoy and his bubbles rising to the surface.
Endurance’s Dive team at work
After half an hour Leading Diver Ellis was replaced in the water by Diver Boughen and at 1304 the dive ended. Both divers had seen the mooring, but as most of it was buried in deep silt it could not be freed and brought to the surface. BAS thanked the guys and gave a gift to the team to show appreciation for their efforts.
Once back at the ship we stowed gear, had a quick cup of coffee and then it was back to work in sick bay.
HMS Endurance has a bigger sick bay than any other RN vessel with this size of ship’s company. There is an admin office, a treatment room and a two bedded ward with en-suite bathroom. The POMA Mark Townsend has recently worked very hard in the treatment room arranging the drugs so that we now have a very well laid out pharmacy in the cupboards and drawers.
Because of the dive, I missed afternoon fresh cases but the POMA had seen those who had attended and when I got back we had a chat about what we had both done that day. Team work is essential in a sick bay. It is important that we share information on everything from the diver’s medical equipment, to our stores, to the patients we have treated.
The medical facilities are very good onboard compared to those in other Royal Navy Ships. We have a small admin office where all the notes, computer records and numerous files and references are kept. We have a treatment room, which has to be an emergency treatment room, a minor injuries treatment room and a GP surgery. We also have a 2-bedded ward with an en-suite bathroom. There is also a large medical store in the front storage area of the Ship.
At 1600 Clubz piped that there would be a circuit session on the fos’cle at 1630. The medical department, along with our first aiders, are frequent attenders at these sessions and today was no exception. It was chilly on the upper deck but once the warm up was over we did not notice the cold. Around us glaciers shone blue and the sea glowed aquamarine in the strong sunlight. Fur seals glided elegantly through the waves and the occasion penguin also passed us by.
After circuits it was in for a shower and I changed into Red Sea Rig for the evening. This rig is worn by officers after about 1800 and consists of black trousers with a white short-sleeved shirt with boards and the ship’s red cummerbund. Our cummerbunds are double sided: on one side is the ship’s crest but when we are down south, we wear them the other way around, with the penguin showing.
After the command brief at 1830, during which all key players on the ship inform the Captain of the major departmental issues of the day, it was time for supper. After supper I sat down to send an e-mail home then caught up on some paper work before folding down my bed and getting a good night’s sleep.
The medical facilities are very good onboard compared to those in other Royal Navy Ships. We have a small admin office where all the notes, computer records and numerous files and references are kept. We have a treatment room, which has to be an emergency treatment room, a minor injuries treatment room and a GP surgery. We also have a 2-bedded ward with an en-suite bathroom. There is also a large medical store in the front storage area of the Ship.
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