Scuba Diver/Nurse

[Leharm27]

Hi, I am a registered nurse as well as a scuba diver. I am a PADI Advanced trained diver and have done 52 dives. I mainly do cold water diving since I am from the Midwest but recently I also did some dives with my husband in Cozumel, Mexico, which was AMAZING!!

I am an RN trained in medical/surgical nursing and have a lot of experience with people with disabilities. I would LOVE to do an exchange where I could do nursing care for disabled divers in exchange for having my dive trip paid for. Does anyone know where I could get connected with someone interested in that and/or an organization that would want someone like that?

Any info you have would be great. Thanks so much!!

[Karibelle]

You might want to take a look at the Handicap Scuba Association Handicap Scuba Association

good luck!
kari

[gurnie]

Talk to Diveheart, they are alway looking for help.
Diveheart Foundation Official Website

[pasley]

Your nursing credential is a plus and will provide value on land, but does not qualify you to assist an adaptive diver in the water. True you are more knowledgeable than the average diver, but there is a world of things about adaptive SCBA Diving that you need to know. Handicapped SCUBA Association International (HSA), the original adaptive dive certification agency is over 31 years old, and taking their Dive Buddy Training would provide you with additional skills to serve as an Adaptive SCUBA Dive Buddy in the water. HSA Certified Dive Buddies are qualified to assist adaptive divers with the following disabilities: paraplegic, quadriplegic, blind, amputee up to and including quad-amputee, MS, autism and other disabilities. Being a dive buddy to an adaptive diver who is a complete quadriplegic is far different from being a dive buddy to an "able bodied" diver. Next I would say to post on the HSA website and on some of the adaptive oriented boards offering your services such as www.dsiabilitytodaynetwork.com or www.wheelchairdivers.com to name a few.

Bottom line, I don't really see much market. Most adaptive divers that would require the services you are talking about will most likely already have an attendant (family or paid) and they would reward them with the trip as they are already comfortable with them and it would be a bit of a snub to leave someone at home in Wisconsin or where ever while they take a trip to Cozumel with another nurse. Same goes for dive buddies, they probably have a steady specially trained dive buddy (family member or friend) that they would take along or hire an HSA DM or Instructor (or pair up on HSA website with local dive buddy). HSA International does dive travel for adaptive divers as does Dive Heart (the head of which is an HSA International Course Director). Not saying there not a market for what you are proposing, just that I believe it would be limited.

[Bratface]

It is very doubtful that anyone would subsidize your dive trip for assisting with disabled divers. The organizations I am familiar with use volunteers. Your experience as a diver would need to be on a higher level to do in-water assisting. There may be some assisting you could do out of water.

I, too, am a Registered Nurse and diver. Volunteering is very rewarding. I moved to Roatan, Honduras for four months to assist at one of the clinics. My dive shop held a fund raiser for me and I used my own funds as well. I took care of all of my own expenses, but I do know that some people who volunteered were given lower rates at a particular dive shop. They usually stayed a week or so.