 Doctors, nurses, technicians, and health educators staffed the vessel in addition to the operating crew The ship also provided general health education in the form of leaflets, talks and film shows, as well as providing emergency medical evacuations.A measure of the success of "Christmas Seal" can be seen in mortality rates; in 1947 there were 500 deaths from TB in the province, in 1958 it was 64.By 1970, the decline in rates of infection, and the improvements in road access on the island, meant that the services of "Christmas Seal" were no longer required.