ESPERANZA DEL MAR

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Captain of hospital ship fired for disobeying orders from ISM

The captain of the 'Esperanza del Mar' has been fired for trying to disembark a doctor infected with Covid 19 in the Azores. The ISM had ordered him to keep the patient isolated on the hospital ship, but he tolerated the negotiation to evacuate him and ended up being demoted to second officer. To tolerate that the doctor suspected of being infected with Covid and a colleague negotiate with Portugal the disembarkation and evacuation of the patient to Ponta Delgada between April 14 and 30, 2020, in full confinement due to the state of alarm, has cost the captain of the health care and logistics ship his job. He had held the position since 1996. The Social Chamber of the Superior Court of Xustiza de Galicia (TSXG) endorsed the dismissal as it is a position of trust. The ship had left its base in Vigo on April 4, 2020 and, in the following five days, provided assistance to the fishing boat 'Ribel Tercero', aboard which several crew members had symptoms compatible with Covid. The most serious patient was taken aboard the hospital ship and transferred to Vigo. Back at sea on April 13, one of the doctors felt vulnerable, and the Las Palmas Social Institute of the Navy (ISM) ordered him to be isolated in a non-Covid work area. On April 25 the doctor had a fever and ordered his evacuation as he was a suspected case. The captain insisted to the ISM that he had to be disembarked at the next port of call in the Azores, but he was hesitant because he would remain in quarantine there. The ISM preferred that he remained on board, in the non-covid zone. To save time, another doctor contacted the Portuguese health authorities to find out the procedure to evacuate him and do the covid test ashore. The captain showed his "discomfort" and scolded both doctors for the "image" of lack of coordination that they gave to the public. However, the ISM accused them of violating the protocols and filed and sanctioned the captain and the doctor. After 25 years of service on the 'Esperanza del Mar', he was demoted to second bridge officer, a category he held prior to his appointment. The captain went to trial because he considered that his demotion entailed a substantial modification of his working conditions that was not allowed in the ship's collective agreement. The TSXG now endorsed his dismissal because he did not change job category but rather his senior management contract, based on trust, already broken, was extinguished. The ISM management opened a disciplinary file for him on July 1, 2020 for two very serious offenses for "notorious breach" of the functions inherent to his position and sanctioned him with a total of nine months without employment or salary. They accused him of repeatedly questioning the orders of the ISM in relation to the measures to be adopted in case of suspicion of contagion of Covid from a doctor and of not adopting any disciplinary measure towards the subordinate who spoke with Portugal.