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ABOUT VESSEL SANITATION PROGRAM WORKSHOPS

Image by Alonso Reyes

The Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP) workshops were conceived to bridge the communication gap between government regulators and shipboard personnel by explaining recommended standards, emphasizing the reasons for them, and discussing how to comply with them.
 
Today, these workshops are designed for the cruise ship industry to address public health practices that are important for protection of cruise ship passengers and crew. Only attendees from cruise lines that are a part of VSP can sign up for seminars. Class sizes are limited to maximize opportunities for seminar participation.

The VSP 2.5-day workshop provides lectures, interactive exercises, and practical hands-on sessions for management personnel from cruise ships that are a part of VSP. Workshops are led by the VSP Environmental Health Officers who conduct the twice-yearly unannounced inspections. The training is based on criteria from the current VSP Operations Manual and other public health resources.

 

Participants structure each session with their questions about the public health principles in the VSP's Operations Manual. The seminar format also allows for more-informal information exchanges outside of class time.

 

Combined Operations sessions on the first day provide opportunities to discuss topics that overlap with cruise ship operations. Hotel/Food & Beverage Operations sessions and Technical Operations sessions are offered concurrently on the last day and a half.

TOPICS COVERED DURING VSP WORKSHOPS

SEE THE VSP WORKSHOP OUTLINE HERE

Combined Operations

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  • VSP Program Overview

  • Surveillance, Passenger/Employee Health, and Outbreak Investigations

  • Equipment and Facilities

  • Environmental Health

  • Housekeeping and Infection Control

  • Integrated Pest Management

Hotel/F&B Operations

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  • Foodborne Hazards and Illness

  • Food Safety: Parts 1 and 2

  • Potable Water—Food and Beverage

  • Recreational Water Facilities—Food and Beverage

  • Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP): Parts 1 and 2

Technical Operations

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  • Waterborne Illnesses

  • Water Chemistry

  • Potable Water

  • Recreational Water Facilities

  • Cross-connection Control

  • Food Protection and HACCP—Technical

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What do cruise ship supervisors learn during the course?

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Attendees will learn about public health practices specified in the current VSP Operations Manual. These practices include the following:

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  • Gastrointestinal illness surveillance and outbreak investigations.

  • Causes and prevention of foodborne illnesses.

  • Equipment and facilities for food and other areas.

  • Food protection.

  • Hazard analysis critical control points and how to apply them.

  • General environmental health maintenance for child activity centers and ventilation systems.

  • Potable water protection and handling.

  • Recreational water facility maintenance.

  • Integrated pest management.

  • Housekeeping and infection control.

  • Waterborne illnesses (both potable and recreational).

  • Cross-connection controls.

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