USPH Manuals and Instructions

USPH — United States Public Health

Every maritime specialist recognizes the abbreviation “USPH” and understands the level of work, know-how and sense of responsibility on the part of the employees on board necessary, in order to reach and maintain the current requirements of USPH standard.

We have a wealth of experience in the area of hygiene and especially USPH. Our specialist member of staff has regularly attained evaluation scores between 98 and the maximum 100 on several ships – and not only on new ships, but also on cruise ships more than 30 years old.

This is a result of his specialist knowledge of the rules and regulations in different ports around the world: knowledge acquired both through personal acquaintance with various inspectors and his understanding of the major issues they consider during their inspections. This enabled him to develop a continuous on-board training programme.

What VSP does

The Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP) at the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) assists the cruise ship industry to prevent and control the introduction, transmission, and spread of gastrointestinal (GI) illnesses on cruise ships.

VSP operates under the authority of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. Section 264 Quarantine and Inspection Regulations to Control Communicable Diseases).

VSP accomplishes this mission by

• Inspecting cruise ships in periodic, unannounced operational sanitation inspections.
• Monitoring gastrointestinal illnesses and investigating or responding to outbreaks.
• Training cruise ship employees on public health practices.
• Providing health education and reliable and current public health information to the cruise ship industry, the travelling public, public health professionals, state and local health authorities, and the media.

The following countries currently implement the American Public Health standard:

• USA
• Canada
• Australia
• United Kingdom
• Brazil

These kind of inspections must be expected in every country worldwide. The authorities have the right to make such inspections and do so at will.