Non-Diving PADI specialties

[archman]

... and it involved 6 dives over 2 days...Yes, it was a PADI class. How did you demonstrate bringing an unresponsive diver to the surface or doing a search pattern without diving? I've said before that my rescue class didn't improve my actual dive skills much, but it was definitely a worthwhile class. And it involved diving

I took Rescue with NAUI, and the only time we actually used SCUBA was for the submerged rescue. That takes a couple minutes. Everything else is on the surface. During one of the open water sessions there's an opportunity to actually log a dive, if you count sitting in a ring on the bottom for ten minutes demonstrating rescue ascents. Yeah!

I'd argue that the better your Rescue course, the LESS diving you do. Maybe PADI's program's a tad different. What on earth do you DO during these six PADI-mandated dives, besides take time away from all the surface work?

Oh well, I retract my facetious argument that PADI Rescue isn't an actual diving specialty. At the very least you strap on a tank.

[Snowbear]

archman - sounds like a case of agency vs. instructor arguement....

Oh yeah - we did LOTS of surface skill stuff!

We did several practice sessions of a controlled ascent with an unconscious diver, including going over OxTox seizure procedure. - For my log - I counted these as only 2 dives, though there were several ascents involved.

2 search pattern scenarios,

2 "Surprise Rescue" scenarios - The best was the "final exam" - a diver who was entangled by a rope to the anchor chain. That was fun - I was the fastest to get suited up when the "buddy" reported a missing diver, so took charge and jumped in. The viz in the cove was exceptional that day for summertime in AK - ~30'! I saw the rescuee from the surface, announced my intentions and instructions and dropped down. I had a knife but determined the fastest way to deal with this was just unwind the rope. The diver then signalled OOA and we did an ascent. She the was "not breathing" at the surface and we took it from there. Meanwhile her "buddy" got hypothermic and tried to "drown". All-in-all, the 4 of us got a lot out of the class.

[Otter]

And unfortunately, its a class whose skills are not practiced nearly enough....God forbid when the time comes, how many people will remember what to do.

[archman]

And unfortunately, its a class whose skills are not practiced nearly enough....God forbid when the time comes, how many people will remember what to do.

That's why you take it over, and over, and over again. This course should offer refresher versions in order to stay current, like virtually every other flipping medic-type certification in the workplace. Treat it like lifeguarding, which is refreshed every three years in the U.S.. Three years isn't so bad.

It'd be nice for dive shops too. They would be compelled to maintain high teaching standards, else the veteran rescue divers getting rechecked would catch them and raise cain. I'm speaking from experience here.

I want to take Snowbears's version. That was one serious-sounding class!