Ship medical chest management, built and audited to your flag state
Ship medical chest management is the build, audit and restock of a vessel’s medicine chest against its flag-state scale, run here by emergency physicians led by Ann Jarris MD, MBA, FACEP. We map the contents to MLC 2006 and your flag, audit at least every 12 months, and handle the controlled substances a general supplier cannot.
- Mapped to your flag state
- Inspected at least every 12 months
Seattle, 2016
Ann Jarris MD, FACEP
At least every 12 months
MLC 2006 A4.1
There is no universal contents list. Four sources set yours.
MLC 2006 Standard A4.1(4)(a) requires ships to carry a medicine chest, medical equipment and a medical guide, inspected at regular intervals, at least once every 12 months under MLC guidance and most flag-state rules.
Contents and quantities are drawn from the WHO International Medical Guide for Ships (3rd edition) and its Quantification Addendum. The Category A, B and C classification comes from EU Directive 92/29/EEC, not from WHO or IMO. In US waters, the literal medicine-chest requirement for fishing vessels sits in 46 CFR 28.210. Open registries such as the Marshall Islands publish their own, for example Marshall Islands Marine Notice 7-042-1.
Build, audit, restock, on one physician team
1 Build
- Mapped to your flag state, voyage and crew size
- Contents and quantities from the WHO IMGS and its addendum
- Medical equipment and the medical guide included
2 Audit
- Documented inspection at least once every 12 months
- Contents, quantities and expiry checked against the requirement
- Findings you can show a flag-state or port inspector
3 Restock
- Expiry tracking and resupply before items lapse
- Controlled substances handled by your DEA-registered officer
- Mapped back to the same physician team, not a separate vendor
What a medicine chest inspection checks, and what you get
MLC 2006 Guideline B4.1.1 expects the medicine chest, its contents and the medical equipment to be inspected at intervals of no more than 12 months. Our inspection is the audit step of MedChest: a documented check of the chest against the standard your vessel actually answers to, with findings a flag-state or port inspector can read.
- The standard, named. Flag-state list, EU Directive 92/29/EEC category, or the WHO International Medical Guide for Ships (3rd edition) and its quantification addendum, matched to crew size and voyage length.
- Contents and quantities. Every item counted against that standard, shortfalls listed.
- Expiry. Every dated item checked; anything expired or expiring before the next inspection flagged for replacement.
- Controlled substances. Stock reconciled against the dispensing and disposal records, which 21 CFR 1304.04 requires to be kept for 2 years, under the DEA registration covered by our controlled substances service.
- Equipment and guide. Medical equipment present and serviceable, and the medical guide aboard in the edition the standard requires.
- The record. A dated inspection record listing the standard applied, findings and the restock list, kept for the next inspector who asks.
Fishing vessels have their own US floor in 46 CFR 28.210, and what a port state control officer looks for is covered in our PSCO inspection guide.
A chest holds controlled substances. A supplier cannot legally handle them.
A box of supplies, or a compliant chest
| Capability | Generic marine kit | MedChest |
|---|---|---|
| Mapped to flag state & voyage | Generic | Mapped |
| Contents from WHO IMGS | No | Yes |
| Documented inspection, 12-month | Your job | Handled |
| Controlled substances | Cannot handle | DEA officer included |
| Expiry & restock tracking | Manual | Managed |
| Medical guide | Maybe | Included |
Directed by a board-certified emergency physician
Ann Jarris, MD, MBA, FACEP
References. Maritime Labour Convention, 2006, Standard A4.1 and Guideline B4.1.1 (medical care on board), International Labour Organization. WHO International Medical Guide for Ships, 3rd edition, plus Quantification Addendum. EU Directive 92/29/EEC (Category A, B and C classification). 46 CFR 28.210 (US commercial fishing industry vessels). Marshall Islands Marine Notice 7-042-1.
Stocking it yourself? Read these first
This page is the done-for-you service. If your crew runs the chest in-house, these physician-reviewed guides cover the same rules we audit against.
- How to stock a ship medicine chest, step by step: the six-step method, from the binding rule to the record.
- Ship medicine chest requirements by flag state: which scale applies to US-flag, Marshall Islands and Panama vessels.
- MLC medicine chest inspection checklist: what a port state control officer checks.
- 46 USC 11102, the US medicine chest statute: the federal duty to carry a chest.
- EU Directive 92/29/EEC categories A, B and C: the category system many flags borrow.
- Controlled substance schedules aboard a vessel: the part of the chest that needs a DEA registrant.
Answers buyers and search engines look for
What must a ship's medicine chest contain?
There is no single global list. Contents depend on your flag state, voyage and crew size, drawn from the WHO International Medical Guide for Ships, under MLC 2006 Standard A4.1(4)(a), which also requires medical equipment and a medical guide.
How often must a ship's medicine chest be inspected?
At regular intervals, at least once every 12 months under MLC 2006 guidance (Guideline B4.1.1) and most flag-state rules. The inspection checks contents, quantities and expiry, and should be documented.
Who decides the contents of the chest?
Your flag state, using MLC 2006 and references such as the WHO International Medical Guide for Ships. The Category A, B and C vessel classification comes from EU Directive 92/29/EEC, not from WHO or IMO. Open registries publish their own, for example Marshall Islands Marine Notice 7-042-1.
Does the medicine chest include controlled substances?
Yes, and a general marine supplier cannot legally acquire, store or dispense them. That requires a DEA-registered medical officer under 21 CFR 1301.25. We run both, so the chest and its controls are one program. See Controlled Substances →
Do you map the chest to open registries like the Marshall Islands?
Yes. We map the chest to US-flag and major open registries, each to its own published requirements, including flag-state marine notices such as Marshall Islands MN 7-042-1.
The rest of your medical program
Controlled Substances
The controls that make the chest legal
Consulting
Which rules apply to your fleet
Get your chest mapped, audited and restocked
- ✓ Mapped to your flag state and voyage
- ✓ Documented inspection, at least every 12 months
- ✓ Controlled substances handled legally
- ✓ One physician team, not a supply vendor