6/26 – MediSee App

The Maritime Medical Handbook is the standard reference work for maritime medicine on seagoing vessels flying the German Flag. In June 2026, an app tailored to the book was launched. The MediSee App provides access to life-saving instructions right from your mobile phone – practical, easy for laypeople to understand, and free of charge.

A medical emergency is an exceptional situation even on land. On board, the challenge is several times greater: Out at sea, the nearest emergency doctor and the nearest hospital are often several days’ journey away. This means the crew must rely solely on themselves to care for the sick and injured. The captain is ultimately responsible, though treatment is usually carried out by the second navigational officer, who has only recently completed their medical training as part of their studies. Every five years, navigational officers also undergo refresher medical training to prepare them for handling medical emergencies. However, even the most intensive multi-day course is no substitute for a medical degree. Navigational officers remain medical laypeople.

This makes it all the more important to have the best possible support available on board. For ships flying the German Flag, this is primarily provided by the Maritime Medical Handbook and the corresponding Emergency Cards, the ship’s onboard pharmacy, and the option of radio medical consultation. All these components of medical care are closely coordinated.

In response to numerous requests from navigational officers, the Maritime Medical Handbook is now complemented by the MediSee App: From any location and on any mobile phone, users can now access life-saving emergency procedures at any time, including audio and video instructions as well as direct links to subsections in the Maritime Medical Handbook. An intelligent keyword search makes it easy to navigate directly to the right content, even in stressful situations. The app is bilingual (German/English) and – an important requirement on board – works even without internet connection.

The app was developed by the authors of the Maritime Medical Handbook: Annelie Ewen (Maritime Medical Service), Dr. Philipp Langenbuch (former head of the Maritime Medical Service), and Dr. Jens Tülsner (Marine Medical Solutions). It is published by the Federal Ministry of Transport (BMV), which also provided the funding.

With this app, the German Flag offers support to seafarers and shipping companies that is unique among flags in its inclusion of audio and video content.

The MediSee App can be downloaded for free from the AppStore and the Google Play Store.