CASE STUDY
A medical emergency in the middle of nowhere
Songa Offshore & FCM Travel
Songa Offshore
When the crew at Songa Offshore are on the job, they are as close to the middle of nowhere as you can get. This drilling contractor has offices around the world and requires 24/7 travel management services that know how to handle a tough situation in a remote location.
The Challenge:
A medical emergency out at sea.
When one of Songa Offshore’s oil rigs was travelling between Singapore and South Korea, the worst happened. A crew member suffered a medical emergency while onboard. Far from their final destination, the patient was in dire need of medical treatment.
Songa Offshore needed a plan, and they needed it fast.
Getting him home
The first step was to divert the ship to Taiwan. That gave us less than two hours to develop a two-phase emergency plan. By taking advantage of FCM Taiwan’s local resources, we launched a coordinated emergency plan that went into effect the minute the ship docked.
Phase One
An English speaking contact met the crew members at the dock, supplying them with local currency and leading them to the hospital where medical treatment had been arranged. The patient’s carer was set up with accommodation over the 5-day stay as we kept close watch over the situation and helped out with language barriers, cultural issues, and kept tabs on the patient’s recovery.
Phase Two
Once the patient stabilised, phase two was put into action. It was time for the patient and his carer to return home to Australia. We took care of every detail, from booking all the travel arrangements to organising a contact to monitor the journey and the patient’s health. Seven days after the incident, the patient was safe and sound in his Melbourne home.
“FCM can be relied on for global coverage that is not only geographical but also goes beyond mere travel.”
Hubert Mugliette - Human Resources Supervisor, Songa Management Limited
A global network of support
Having a global network up our sleeve comes in handy. Even when disaster strikes in the middle of the ocean, we have your back. We were able to quickly redirect the ship to the closest port and organise medical treatment, accommodation, supplies, and travel in under two hours.