Medical emergencies..what if?

Years ago on our first RS tour, a twisted ankle semi sidelined us. Our amazing wonderful tour guide searched diligently for a doctor/clinic to see us. But guess where doctor's from Europe go in August....away! But she got an A for trying to come up with a solution. Research was done, calls were made; front desk was interrogated for a doctor, etc. What miracle she did pull out of her hat was a champagne bucket full of ice (in a place where if you ask for ice in your glass you get a small cube.) And she found an ointment cream that is an extra strength pain reliever that you can't buy in the US. So staff doctors and nurses at the ready awaiting the arrival of Rick Steves tour groups...no. Ours wasn't emergency room worthy, but if it had been, she would have pointed us in the right direction, I'm sure.

They would dial 112 (European equivalent of 911) and you’d be taken to the hospital. After that, you would make your own decisions and you would engage your own travel/medical insurance for assistance.

Another participant on my first RS tour took a bad tumble off a curb (broken ankle) right after a group dinner. We had two guides (one was a trainee) on the tour. The trainee guide stayed with the injured guest to get her to the hospital while the other ferried the rest of us back to the hotel. They didn’t have medical staff on call but a couple of passersby stopped to offer assistance too. In the day or two afterwards both guides helped navigate travel insurance and making arrangements with our hotel while the injured person waited to get back to the US. The guides do their best to help whenever possible, within reason while still making sure the rest of the tour proceeds normally. It reinforced to me the importance of having some sort of travel insurance.

I am a little unclear what your concern might be. It goes without saying the guides are not medical professionals, but they are professional guides and know how to obtain appropriate help in the areas they are working. It would be virtually impossible for the RS company to have "on call connections" in every single location they cover for all 1,400 tours they offer each year.

On my Best of Turkey tour, a tourmate slipped and severely fractured her ankle. Our tour guide was Turkish and immediately called for an ambulance, arranged for the person to be taken to a private hospital (and went with them), facilitated the process at the hospital (including some translation), went back to the hotel and got her things for her hospital stay, and worked with the hotel to store my tourmate's belongings (she had to stay for surgery and missed the rest of the tour). On another tour in Morocco (used to be part of Spain tour), a tourmate fell and broke her arm, the guide helped get her emergency services, went to the hospital with her, and got her back (with cast) to the group within short order. Other tours people had a variety of medical issues (illness, tummy troubles, dental emergencies) and all were handled with tact and professionalism.

I'm a former tour director and I'll tell you what we were trained to do....

If one of our passengers got ill or had an accident, we would try to find them medical help. Usually, we would consult with our hotel because they are locals and know doctors, hospitals, medical facilities in their area.

But no, there was no special number or contacts to get priority.

Obviously we understand they would do everything possible to render
first aid within their capabilities, not as medical personnel, but
simply as prepared tour guides…and/or would get medical on the scene
as quickly as possible.

No. Why would you expect that? Dial 112 maybe.

Considering that the RS tour group demographic skews toward retirees, albeit fit and active people, no doubt their training includes what to do with all kinds of medical issues, including falls and broken bones. On our last tour, someone fell in the shower and broke their arm. Our guide team (regular guide and trainee) did a wonderful job getting the person to an A & E, gathering personal items needed, etc. I don't think the guides themselves did first aid - can't imagine that would be a requirement of the job. But tour mates often have such training and may volunteer themselves, and most people carry their own first aid kits that they gladly share.

I would expect them to help facilitate medical care by a professional (call the emergency number, direct you to the hospital/urgent care center, call a taxi to get you there), but not provide it themselves. The tour won’t stop due to an injury. After treatment, you either continue on the tour or make arrangements to go home. This is where your travel insurance comes in.

I've been on tours where people had minor injuries and it was the group collective that came together to assist. One woman tripped and had a bit of a gash on her forehead. The group searched through our personal first aid supplies and came up with enough to take immediate care, including steri-strips.

A guide might be able to help tell you where the nearest clinic or pharmacy is, and perhaps accompany you during the tour free-times. However, urgent medical needs on a tour are pretty much the same as urgent medical needs not on a tour. In an emergency, use local emergency medical system. For an urgent illness, check with the hotel for a list of doctors/clinics.

There are also online medical consultations and you can google these companies as well.

This is why you should print and have handy the ID card that is linked to your travel medical policy, as there will be a phone number for the concierge service that is typically part of the policy. For non-life-threatening illnesses, they can help you locate a doctor, set up a telemedicine appointment, etc. One reason to travel WITH phone service.

no doubt their training includes what to do with all kinds of medical
issues, including falls and broken bones

I doubt that there is any standard or requirement for medical training. But a good question to as RS.

I have faith in humanity, so i would believe that most would step up to help, but I would be surprised if that were a requirement of the job .... beyond calling the ambulance. Another good question for RS

Its a good post. But since it was focused on RS tours I did another ... https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/general-europe/what-if-the-worst-happens

It wasn’t a Rick Steve tour, but I was on a tour where I had to remember had a medical emergency and had to go to the hospital. In that case we were actually in London and I was very familiar with London until I volunteered to make sure the group got back to the hotel. We were using public transportation, and she took her to remember to the hospital.

But the problem she had and you’re going to have is they can’t then dedicate their whole time to taking care of the person who was injured. In our case, the British medical system was a complete and total failure and just thought we should take this woman back to the hotel where they sent her and just leave her there by herself unattended for weeks until her arm healed enough for her to travel. We solved that problem by getting her care moved under the care of a private caregiver who coordinated getting her home with her insurance company.

We were on a RSE tour this spring and one of the tour members had a heart attack in the middle of the night. The hotel helped get transport to the hospital and once the couple was there, His wife called our guide in the middle of the night to let him know what happened. Our guide went over to the hospital until breakfast (we were leaving for another destination). Our guide continued to communicate with them and assist as he could remotely - information, translation, etc. The tour member is fine, the doctor would not let them rejoin the tour and they were able to fly home after several days. Fortunately, the emergency happened in a large city with many good hospitals. Our next stop was in the countryside where the nearest hospital was over an hour away - the outcome may not have been so good had it happened to there.

The guides do a great job helping those in need while ensuring the rest of group’s experience is impacted as little as possible.

Those are the replies I hoped to see; they do jump in and help as best they can to arrange for medical help to assist. Of course I didn’t mean for them or infer they should actually render medical aid. I should have worded that differently. It’s definitely then not “ you’re on your own, sorry” and go back to their hotel room. Nice to read all the instances of how they handle such situations and it makes us want to consider a trip with Rick Steves Travel.
Thanks for everyone’s input.

Our RS guide on the Best of Turkey tour took my wife to a private hospital and stayed with her as an interpreter. She had bad diahreha and stomach pains. Fortunately, it was a non travel day (vacation within a vacation). If it had been worse or a travel day, I suspect the guide would have taken us (or put us in a cab) to a hospital and left us with our bags. That's what the travel insurance is for.

A previous poster brought up a good point. If you are in a hotel, whether on a tour or not, and have a medical emergency, call the front desk. They know the area and how to seek medical help. Some even have a doctor on call who will come to the hotel. ( It's not free.)

If you call the guide, you will just waste time because more than likely he/she will call the front desk and ask for referrals.

Get the help first, then tell the guide.

If you are traveling alone, or even as a couple, make sure your emergency contact has all your insurance information, policy numbers and phone numbers for this.

I carry a piece of paper in both my wallet and money belt that has a list of emergency contacts (more than one), my illnesses and a list of the medication I take. (Usually best to know both the brand and chemical name.). Of course, it also has my name on it.

If you search on the internet, you can find cards that can be filled out online that will include this information.