Diving First Aid for Professional Divers

The DAN Diving First Aid for Professional Divers course represents training specifically designed for divers who dive as part of their job duties. It is not appropriate or designed for recreational divers. Students for this course must have an affiliation with an aquarium, commercial diving company or scientific diving operation.

This program includes Oxygen First Aid for Scuba Diving Injuries, AEDs for Scuba Diving Injuries and First Aid for Hazardous Marine Life Injuries as well as workplace CPR and first aid, based on guidelines provided by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for a workplace CPR and first aid course.

Since first aid skills deteriorate with time, retraining in this program is required every two years following successful completion of the course — although some local protocols and regulations require more frequent retraining. In addition, divers are encouraged to practice these and other diving skills regularly. All skills performed in an emergency should be within the scope of your training and experience.

Objectives

The objective of first aid is to establish and/or maintain the life of an injured or ill person until assistance (generally, emergency medical services — EMS) arrives or becomes available at the scene.

It is equally important that the rescuer do no further harm to the injured person. Providing oxygen to an injured diver, for example, will not cause any harm as long as the scene is safe and the oxygen equipment is functioning properly. This means that you must understand the limitations of your skills and knowledge and not attempt any procedure beyond your ability and the scope of your training.

Minimum Hours of Training

Knowledge and skills development = 2 days

Certification Duration

This program comes with a two-year certification.

Skills Development

Knowledge and skill development topics in this program include the following:

• scene safety assessment
• initial assessment
• cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)
• using an AED
• choking
• control of bleeding
• bandaging/splinting
• oxygen equipment identification
• using a DAN demand valve
• delivering oxygen with a nonrebreather mask
• delivering oxygen as part of CPR using a bag-valve mask or an MTV-100
• oxygen equipment assembly and disassembly
• shock management
• secondary assessment
• management of wounds from hazardous marine life
• pressure immobilization technique
• poisonings (discussion topic)
• burns (discussion topic)
• emergency moves
• temperature extremes (discussion topic)
• medical emergencies (discussion topic)

Course Cost:

The course costs $75 for a group class. The tuition includes all books, supplies, and certification card for the course.