When the "stuff" hits the fan?

[Aqua-Andy]

So I was reading these two threads

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/sherwood-scuba/402998-avid-bc-failure.html#post6306372

and

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/accidents-incidents/365071-bc-failure.html

Well they got me thinking, in over 200 dives I've had only one gear malfunction, this was during my cavern class during an OOA drill. What happened was I had to donate air, when the drill was over I dropped my backup out of my mouth and it started to free flow. I quickly put it back in my mouth and stuck my tongue in the mouth piece to try and stop it but this did not work so I promptly shut down that post and after a couple of seconds turned it back on and all was ok. After that incident I felt good about how I handled the problem, but that was two years and over 100 dives ago. We practice drills frequently (well maybe not as often as we should) but these are drills and at the start of them you pretty much know the outcome. This got me thinking is how would I react in a real emergency? How do you all practice for the day when things really go bad.

 

[NJDiver_Chris]

Go down to about 8ft, typically in a pool. Shut off air supply and have to switch to pony bottle or switch to buddies octopus. Sometimes we take off all gear mask, fins, bc, everything, then toss it in the deep end, swim down and put it all back on. Hard to practice for equipment failures because they are difficult to replicate in many cases.

 

[g1138]

I join in on all the basic classes, adv, rescue, and scientific dive classes I can. You get pretty good at handling yourself with a heavy task load if you're responsible for several other divers who have just hit the learning curve.
Demonstrating skills for the instructor is a plus too.

When I have some time to myself in the pool during class sessions I practice taking off my mask, shutting down, donating to buddy invisible etc etc while holding a constant depth. The shallower the better, makes it more challenging.

During ocean sessions I usually just play overwatch. You get some pretty good insight on problem prevention by watching students. If anything it helps as a good reminder to stay tip top.

 

[Keith & Sharon]

If you practice your drills regularly and correctly, then any "real emergency" should just be another drill.

"Survival depends on being able to suppress anxiety and replace it with calm, clear, quick and correct reasoning..." -Sheck Exley

 

[Hoomi]

Good thing Lloyd Bridges isn't still around, or we'd all have to have practice drills on what to do if someone cuts your regulator hose!

 

[TSandM]

It's a great question. Doing drills definitely makes you more facile with the mechanics of the procedures for problem-solving, but it doesn't make your MIND any quicker or more effective. A lot of the technical training I've taken is designed to do exactly that . . . and at the end of one of those classes, you'd probably handle many problems absolutely in stride. But although those of us who take such training DO tend to practice drills, we DON'T tend to set up situations to challenge our effective responses to unplanned issues. I think we ought to do such things more often.

 

[Inked Medic]

Repetition can save your life or the life of someone else.

 

[g1138]

That's a good point to make TSandM. I try to do that in the classes I assist with, but I don't think I'd be able to do that for myself. It's sort of like the not knowing what you don't know basis.

Often times for rescues we teach students to go through the motions of stripping an unconscious diver of their gear while giving rescue breaths and keeping a 10 second count. After the skill I'll usually pose the question of what they should do if they surface 25yd from their dive boat; strip gear or immediately transport?

Other times I'll continually prompt students on the beach that their rescue breaths aren't going in, and they'll just keep going for a re-tilt until I mention that they probably would have broken their victim's neck after the 5th re-tilt. In a rare instance some will get the gears turning in their head and check their victim's mouth for obstructions.

The ironic thing is, I would not have thought to pose these problems to the students if they had not been posed to me at first. All these non-textbook situations I've ever prompted have come from hearing instructors or friends having to deal with that very situation in real life.

 

[DivemasterDennis]

Even the best scenarios are never quite like the real thing. Let's face it, we try to avoid totally surprising our students. No need to cause a coronary or panic. But we can train regularly, we can get as close as possible to a "real thing" and to do that my friend Kevin and I recruit the most hard core and experienced divers around to participate in our rescue classes, and for training with each other. Still, the best we can do is train, repeat, improvise, and always teach prevention is better than rescue.
DivemasterDennis

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I use a flow chart ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)