MEDICAL CRITERIA FOR ABLE-BODIED SEAMEN AND DECKHANDS Description of Job These individuals go out on 27 day voyages in rough waters, with the vessel making random and severe motions. They are sedentary for the first nine days, then perform extremely strenuous labor for nine days, with little sleep, and are then sedentary again for nine days. The strenuous work consists of lifting and stacking heavy cases
of frozen seafood in freezer holds. Lifting Parameters Must be able to lift 100 lb. to shoulder height, and the same
weight overhead by partially resting it on another object. The individual
must be able to perform this continually on the following schedule:
six hours work followed by a one hour break, with intervening 15
minute breaks, for a total of 24 hours. After six hours rest the
individual must be able to perform the same labor for 18 hours. Exposure Parameters Must be able to stand, suitably clothed, face-to arctic conditions
for long periods of time. Respiratory Parameters Must be able to breath in a freezer hold with an air temperature
of 10 deg. F. "Box dust" (fine dust from cardboard boxes)
is usually present in small amounts in the air. Ambulatory Parameters The individual must be to stay on his/her feet for 24 hours, with
minor rest breaks. Long distance walking is not encountered of course,
but due to the rough seas encountered, the individual must be able
to move about a cluttered engine room without an unusual chance
of stumbling. The individual must be relatively insensitive to vertigo. Hearing Candidate must undergo a hearing test. Survival Testing The candidate must be capable of donning a USCG- approved survival
suit in reasonable time, jumping off a vessel or structure at a
height of twelve feet off the water, and swimming in the survival
suit 100 feet to a fixed ladder. The length of swim time is not
important. The candidate must be able to climb the ladder twelve
feet back up to the jumping point. The candidate will be tested
for this by CTI. MEDICAL CRITERIA FOR COOKS Description of Job The candidate would cook for a crew of seven aboard a 180 ft. long boat. The cook has no help with his/her job, and prepares all meals alone. Likewise cleaning of galley spaces and dishwashing. The cook usually works about 10 hours a day, with frequent long breaks. Except for the often wild and random motions of the boat while at sea, the position is much the same as any other cook’s job. Cooks are not usually asked to work on deck, i.e., hauling on heavy
ropes, or performing strenuous manual labor. Lifting Parameters Must be able to lift 50 lb. to waist height, and conduct this up
an eight foot flight of stairs, if only by dragging it up. Must
be able to do this twenty times in six hours, once a week. Respiratory Parameters Must be able to work over a smoky grill. Must be free from tuberculosis
or other severe communicable respiratory diseases. Ambulatory Parameters The job doesn’t require walking for long distances. However,
the candidate must be sure-footed, due to the severe rolling and
pitching motions of the vessel while underway, and the dangerous
proximity to stoves, etc.. Special Considerations Candidate must be tested for foodborne forms of hepatitis. Hearing Candidate must undergo a hearing test. Survival Testing The candidate must be capable of donning a USCG-approved survival
suit in reasonable time, jumping off a vessel or structure at a
height of twelve feet off the water, and swimming in the survival
suit 100 feet to a fixed ladder. The length of swim time is not
important. The candidate must be able to climb the ladder twelve
feet back up to the jumping point. |