What does a yacht nurse do?

What the job involves day to day

YPI Crew describes a nurse who handles routine and emergency care for owners, guests and crew. The list includes physical checks, giving medication and watching for reactions, teaching CPR, taking part in fire and lifeboat drills, and keeping the medical room clean. The nurse also orders and stocks the medical inventory and keeps every injury log. If a guest falls ill far offshore, the nurse looks after them until outside help can take over.

Yotspot adds one task that matters at sea: working with shoreside medical teams and telemedicine services when a case needs them. The yacht can be days from port. In that position you are the person the captain turns to, so your records and stock levels need to be in order at all times.

Medical stores and the regulations behind them

The equipment you manage is set by the flag, not by you. For UK yachts the Maritime and Coastguard Agency publishes MSN 1905, now at Amendment 5, which lists the medicines and equipment ships must carry and the first aid kits. MGN 482 says shipowners must provide medical care on board for seafarers, and that this includes medical stores. Other flags have their own rules, and the captain and management company will tell you which ones apply.

YPI Crew says a typical yacht medical room has oxygen, a defibrillator, specialised medicines and intravenous fluids. Some large yachts go further, with an X-ray machine, a hyperbaric chamber or a SOLAS-approved hospital. What you are cleared to use under your nursing registration is a matter for your own licensing body. This guide gives no clinical advice.

The second job: interior, service or housekeeping

Few yachts carry a nurse who does nothing but medical work. YPI Crew says the role is typically split between nursing and interior work, namely housekeeping and laundry. Yotspot says a dedicated, medical-only post is found mainly on yachts of about 60m and over with a purpose-built medical room. On mid-size yachts you are a stew who also holds the medical brief.

One advert on Yotspot for an 80m private motor yacht asked for a Housekeeper/Nurse who could combine medical support with full stewardess duties. Expect to make beds, serve guests and turn cabins, then drop everything when someone is hurt.

How yachts hire nurses

Nurse posts are filled through crew agencies and job boards, as other crew posts are. YPI Crew says it will not put forward crew who lack STCW Basic Safety Training and a seafarer medical certificate. Yotspot advises nurses to build a complete profile with their nursing registration, STCW, ENG1 and any other certificates uploaded.

Captains and chief stews read the CV for fit as well as clinical skill. Yotspot advises showing your clinical background clearly, then adding any hospitality or team-living experience. It names the likeliest employers: motor yachts of 50m and over on busy charter programmes, owners with specific medical needs, and explorer yachts on long blue-water trips.

Pay

USD a month. Nurse figures from the Northrop & Johnson 2026 crew salary guide. YPI Crew 2026 gives €4,000 to €5,000 a month on most bands from 40m. Yacht size and experience move the figure, and so does whether the post is medical-only or combined with interior work. Refer to the yacht nurse pay page for pay by yacht size.

What you need

• Nursing registrationYPI Crew says you need a full nursing licence. Yotspot says that means current registration in your home country, which for UK nurses is the NMC.
• STCW Basic Safety TrainingRequired for all crew. It covers firefighting, personal survival, elementary first aid and personal safety.
• ENG1 or equivalentThe MCA requires a seafarer medical certificate for the master and crew of sea-going vessels. ENG1 is the UK version and is issued by an MCA-approved doctor.
• Proficiency in Medical CareYotspot says an advanced maritime medical course such as STCW Proficiency in Medical Care is usually expected of whoever takes charge of medical care on board. The course follows STCW Code Table A-VI/4-2.
• Clinical backgroundYotspot says employers prefer a nursing degree, emergency or ICU experience, and BLS and ACLS certificates. Some yachts accept paramedics for posts that are mainly emergency response.
• Interior skillsFor nurse/stew posts, hospitality or service experience counts for a lot. On most yachts you will spend more hours on interior work than on medical cases.

How to get there

1. Before yachtingQualify and register as a nurseHold a full nursing registration in your home country. Yotspot says yachts favour degree-level nurses.
2. Before yachtingBuild acute clinical experienceYotspot names A&E, ITU and trauma work as the best preparation, plus BLS and ACLS.
3. Before applyingGet the sea ticketsComplete STCW Basic Safety Training, pass an ENG1, and consider Proficiency in Medical Care.
4. First yachtStart as nurse/stewWilsonhalligan says a yacht nurse role is almost always paired with stewardess duties. Expect interior duties alongside the medical brief.
5. Later seasonsMove to a dedicated medical postFull-time nurse posts sit mainly on yachts of about 60m and over with a proper medical room, and sometimes alongside a doctor.

Open now on SuperyachtRoles.com

Stew/Nurse on 50m Private M/YTWW Yachts · Worldwide

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Nurse StewBespoke Crew · Caribbean

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Nurse/Housekeeper 100m+ Private Motor YachtWilson Halligan · Worldwide

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Related pages

• Yacht nurse pay by yacht size
• All crew roles

Sources

1. YPI Crew: yacht nurse jobs
2. Yotspot: yacht nurse qualifications, responsibilities and salary guide
3. Yotspot: Housekeeper/Nurse vacancy, 80m motor yacht
4. Wilsonhalligan: how to become a nurse stewardess
5. GOV.UK: MSN 1905 (M+F) Amendment 5 ships' medical stores
6. GOV.UK: MGN 482 Amendment 1 MLC medical care
7. GOV.UK: MGN 640 Amendment 1 medical fitness requirements
8. Bluewater: Proficiency in Medical Care course