The telemedicine system of the Spanish tuna fleet improves the diagnosis and treatment of serious medical conditions on board

The fleet has only had to undertake four crew disembarkations due to requiring medical assistance on the ground, during the 13 months of development of this project.

Madrid - Pilot project 1 of telemedicine systems on board the Spanish tuna fleet, the first of its kind in the world, has demonstrated that its ability to monitor and follow up on health consultations has allowed, not only diagnoses with practically equal precision. than on land, but also identify and treat serious medical conditions effectively. In fact, during the 13 months of development of the pilot, in which 400 crew members have participated, the fleet has only had to undertake four landings by frames of this type.

According to the data provided by the Vithas Vigo Hospital, responsible for medical care during the pilot, the most recurrent ailments have been mild respiratory symptoms, such as otitis, sinusitis, pharyngitis, etc., and different types of trauma. Specifically, during the pilot, 18 crew members have used the service, generating 41 consultations, and eight of them have required follow-up with specialist doctors.

According to Dr. Idoya Sanluis, head of the Emergency Service at the Vithas Vigo Hospital, “monitoring patients from the ground, through telemedicine equipment installed on board and equipped with the necessary instruments, allows for more effective health management. In particular, electrocardiographic monitoring has proven essential to rule out or confirm diagnoses that, due to their severity, may require treatment on the ground and, therefore, urgent evacuation."

In this regard, it is worth remembering that, last December, this project made it possible to diagnose and monitor, until evacuation to Seychelles, a myocardial infarction of a crew member that occurred on the high seas, and was resolved positively, thanks to both the capacity of diagnosis, as well as monitoring the patient's evolution.

Likewise, to guarantee the greatest precision in the diagnosis, the project allows remote consultations to be carried out with the hospital center's team of specialist doctors. Specifically, the fleet has required consultations with the specialties of cardiology, ophthalmology, general surgery, neurosurgery, plastic surgery and endocrinology.

The Organization of Associated Producers of Large Freezer Tuna Vessels (OPAGAC) has promoted this project in which the crew members of 12 vessels in its fleet have participated - four in the Pacific Ocean, three in the Atlantic and five in the Indian Ocean - and which is integrated in its social sustainability policy to improve working and living conditions on board.

Each ship has a telemedicine team with satellite connectivity and is equipped with the necessary instruments to monitor vital signs (electrocardiogram, blood pressure, oxygen saturation and temperature), as well as a dermatoscope, iriscope, otoscope and an imaging camera. general exploration. Prior to the installation of this medical equipment, the fleet trained 50 skippers, captains and deck officers in its use.

This equipment has been completed with circadian monitoring devices or activity bracelets that record the body temperature, physical activity or sleep cycles of the crew members.

OPAGAC's objective with this project, developed in collaboration with the Polytechnic University of Madrid, is to make the best tools available to shipowner companies to offer a connected and comprehensive medical service to the more than 2,400 crew members of its 48 ships, and reduce thus the accident rate on board and the costs derived from it.

According to Julio Morón, managing director of OPAGAC “this project, pioneering in a fishery, is the tip of the iceberg of a clear and determined fleet policy in favor of giving social sustainability in fishing the same weight as environmental sustainability or the economic one. We are frankly satisfied with the reception it has had among the crew and the shipping companies,” adds Morón, “and really happy to have saved a life.”

1 This project has been approved by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food within the call for Fisheries Innovation of the year 2021 of the Recovery and Resilience Plan of the Government of Spain, regulated by RD 685/2921, and financed with 747,932.60 euros , of which OPAGAC receives 621,794.37 euros, under the Next Generation EU funds.

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