diving with a person with medical condition

[jimmysdevoted]

soooooo..
I am working on my first responder/ skin diver rescue coourse.. cruising along here and an interesting question popped upand an interesting comment..
a question was asked.. how do you feel about divning in any manner wiht someone who has;
diabetes, heart condition with or without pacemaker, epilepsy, neck or back fusions, MS etc.

one perosn commented thattheywoudl never dive with anyone with a medical condition, too much of a risk in case something goes wrong...

another said what would I do in case of an emergency.. duh your in a first responder rescue class..........

so.. lets say do you think that perosn you are diving with shoudl give you a few tips on what to do in case something goes a wry or woudl you just refuse..

For me, I am diabetic.. type 1 in excellent control.. i skin dive with hubby who is also a diabetic educator.. so he has a handle on things... maybe thast one reason why I prefer the control of skin diving versus SCUBA in case something happens.......

julie

[oddbod]

Originally Posted by jimmysdevoted

soooooo..
I am working on my first responder/ skin diver rescue coourse.. cruising along here and an interesting question popped upand an interesting comment..
a question was asked.. how do you feel about divning in any manner wiht someone who has;
diabetes, heart condition with or without pacemaker, epilepsy, neck or back fusions, MS etc.

one perosn commented thattheywoudl never dive with anyone with a medical condition, too much of a risk in case something goes wrong...

another said what would I do in case of an emergency.. duh your in a first responder rescue class..........

so.. lets say do you think that perosn you are diving with shoudl give you a few tips on what to do in case something goes a wry or woudl you just refuse..

For me, I am diabetic.. type 1 in excellent control.. i skin dive with hubby who is also a diabetic educator.. so he has a handle on things... maybe thast one reason why I prefer the control of skin diving versus SCUBA in case something happens.......

julie

Have dived with diabetics,epileptics and a few cardiac survivors (it comes with age ) and as long as it is under control I can't see a problem, actually didn't know the diabetic was and had dived with him occasionally for years.
It really is up to the person to make sure they are fit enough on the day, that is how I found out about the diabetic, he just said he wasn't feeling right on the day.

[diver 85]

You did not list mental problems---that's what most are bothered by....

[oddbod]

Originally Posted by diver 85

You did not list mental problems---that's what most are bothered by....

The statistics on sanity are that one out of every four Americans is suffering from some form of mental illness. Think of your three best friends. If they're okay, then it's you.Rita Mae Brown
US author and social activist

[wgt]

Originally Posted by jimmysdevoted

soooooo..
I am working on my first responder/ skin diver rescue coourse.. cruising along here and an interesting question popped upand an interesting comment..
a question was asked.. how do you feel about divning in any manner wiht someone who has;
diabetes, heart condition with or without pacemaker, epilepsy, neck or back fusions, MS etc.

one perosn commented thattheywoudl never dive with anyone with a medical condition, too much of a risk in case something goes wrong...

another said what would I do in case of an emergency.. duh your in a first responder rescue class..........

so.. lets say do you think that perosn you are diving with shoudl give you a few tips on what to do in case something goes a wry or woudl you just refuse..

For me, I am diabetic.. type 1 in excellent control.. i skin dive with hubby who is also a diabetic educator.. so he has a handle on things... maybe thast one reason why I prefer the control of skin diving versus SCUBA in case something happens.......

julie

Irrespective of the apparent health of another diver, it is possible for things to go wrong, leading to injury or death of the affected diver. Therefore, any time we agree to buddy up with another, we are accepting the risk that we will have to assist in an emergency, perhaps of a life-threatening nature. What then are the major threats thus faced by a diver, whether healthy or stricken with a disease (e.g., MS, epilepsy)? They are generally identical -- drowning or decompression illness. If we are willing to confront such events in a non-diseased buddy, we should therefore be willing to address them in divers with identifiable disease conditions, within limits. To state this another way, if I am not a good enough diver to help a drowning epileptic, then I am also not a good enough diver to help a drowning non-epileptic.

So, what are these limits, and how do we go about setting them? This is the point where good judgment must prevail. If a prospective buddy is wearing a sign that says, "I have a disease that makes it 90% probable that I will have a seizure or heart attack underwater," then one perhaps ought to say, "no thank you," simply to avoid complicity in a grotesquely high-risk endeavor. However, by exploring/discussing the diving history of the prospective buddy (e.g., "She has 429 dives logged in open water in difficult conditions during the last 4 years without a problem"), then the health issue becomes much less problematic.

Another possible approach to the question is, "Am I a good enough diver to get myself safely to the surface (and back on the boat) in the event that I am abandoned in these rough seas in this strong current?" This is an important question, as a drowned buddy is of limited help in such situations.

The general question from the OP is interesting and thought-provoking. When confronted with such uncertainty, good sense is the best guide. Why not entertain creative solutions?! For example, it may be wise to form a three-buddy team, etc.

[wgt]

Originally Posted by diver 85

You did not list mental problems---that's what most are bothered by....

Sometimes the manifestations of a mental illness are clearly incompatible with diving. "Hi, I took up diving because the CIA is out to get me, and I need to kill all of their underwater agents. By the way (eyebrow raised), what does that DIR on your shoulder patch stand for?"

Another point to consider relates not to interactions between the aquatic environment and an underlying mental disease. Rather, medications used in the treatment of a mental disease may be problematic (e.g., lowering the threshold for the expression of seizures -- not a good thing at a pO2 of 1.60).

[diver 85]

Originally Posted by wgt

Sometimes the manifestations of a mental illness are clearly incompatible with diving. "Hi, I took up diving because the CIA is out to get me, and I need to kill all of their underwater agents. By the way (eyebrow raised), what does that DIR on your shoulder patch stand for?"

Another point to consider relates not to interactions between the aquatic environment and an underlying mental disease. Rather, medications used in the treatment of a mental disease may be problematic (e.g., lowering the threshold for the expression of seizures -- not a good thing at a pO2 of 1.60).

Yea, that's what I said-----I think........

[coyote]

Originally Posted by oddbod

The statistics on sanity are that one out of every four Americans is suffering from some form of mental illness. Think of your three best friends. If they're okay, then it's you.Rita Mae Brown
US author and social activist

Between my three best friends and myself, i think as a group we're well above the average.

[jimmysdevoted]

I know that everyone at some point will experience something... but here is another question along those topics.. how woudl you turn someone down, if you knew had some sort of medical condition that could possibley be a danger or complication to a good diving event?
Even though lets say the DM knew about this person and he wont go in the water..
Can you be diplomatic even though he may be a good diver with lots of logged dives and yet still be a bit off?

j

[cummings66]

I would be honest with them and tell them that I thought the medical problem was too much for "me" to handle. I dive with a buddy who's got a medical problem and I'm sure I'll be able to deal with things if something goes south.