In addition to being knowledgeable of<unk>  gear,<unk> farers should know how to avoid and address crew-overboard (COB) incidents.<unk>  precautions to help prevent a crew member from going overboard include:
Remain sober
Wear nonskid footwear
Walk in a crouched position or crawl if there is excessive boat motion
Use a<unk>  harness
Avoid obstacles on deck
Refrain from urinating off of boat
Avoid leaning overboard to vomit. Use a bucket
Practice “boom awareness”
However, if you do find yourself in a COB situation, there are some general procedures that should be followed.  Shout “crew overboard” if you witness someone falling overboard. Time is the critical factor in recovery. Next, use a global positioning system (GPS) receiver to store the coordinates of the victim. Then, broadcast a pan-pan on very high frequency (VHF) radio to alert nearby vessels. When returning to the victim, keep in mind they will drift downwind and downcurrent. Assign a crew member to spot the victim and keep visualization during recovery efforts. A flotation device should be thrown to the victim. Special equipment to aid in locating and retrieving the COB include: a COB pole, drogue, crew overboard module, and SOS Dan Buoy. Keep an eye out for flashing strobe lights that are attached to a life jacket. If the victim goes overboard with a beacon that transmits a signal (typically on EPIRB frequency) when immersed in water, crews can use a radio or automatic direction finder to hone in on them.  A personal locator beacon (PLB) can also be carried and activated. The system works reliably but broadcasts little information of use to the rescuing crew on the vessel.
The goal is to return as quickly as possible to the COB. For motorboats and sailboats under power alone, reduce speed, turn in a simple circle, and approach the victim heading upwind, with the person 20 feet to one side.  Establish contact with the COB by throwing a rescue rope.  The COB must be approached slowly with the boat under good control to prevent collision. There is debate over whether to have the engine on when rescuing a COB due to risk of propeller injury.  The final approach direction is determined by<unk>  conditions, winds, drift, maneuverability of the boat, and the condition of the COB. If the<unk> s are large, the approach will be downwind to prevent the boat from falling off a wave and injuring the COB. If the<unk> s are low or flat, the approach will be upwind with a drift down to the victim. The recovery may require a rescue swimmer to retrieve an injured, hypothermic, or unconscious COB. Rescue swimmers must be knowledgeable of water rescue and life saving techniques. Contact should be maintained with the rescue swimmer via a tether. If the COB is unconscious, a head or neck injury may be present, and the cervical spine should be stabilized before withdrawal from the water. It is easy to aspirate water and drown when unconscious in the water. Therefore, careful consideration should be taken when determining whether or not to put a second life in danger.
Once the vessel has<unk>  returned to the COB, you want to get the victim back on board as soon as possible.  To prevent unanticipated problems from arising, rescue techniques should be practiced prior to implementation in a real life scenario. The Lifesling pack is a device that enables a single individual to rescue a COB. The floating horseshoe collar is used as a hoisting sling. When using such a system, the lifting mechanism should not be improvised to avoid suboptimal results. Again, rescue techniques should be practiced to increase familiarity with equipment and chance of success.
Safety at sea
Pregnancy and lactation drug labeling
Penile diagnoses
Care under fire
Diagnosis of death
Conducted energy device
Getting started
Commercial in-flight medical emergencies