Diver's with Disabilities (Red Sea)

[joyceschur]

Hi all!

I'm relatively new to scubaboard, but I'm a divemaster with extensive Red Sea experience (Egypt, Jordan, Israel) as well as the mother of a special needs child (my son Josh is 24 and has cerebral palsy).

I originally became a diver 6 years ago because I was looking for recreational sports activities that could be adapted for my son and scuba seemed like a perfect fit.

Two years ago, I was introduced to an organization in Israel called ETGARIM. The word "etgarim" is Hebrew and it means "challenges". This is a wonderful organization that offers a broad range of recreational sports activities adapted for special needs individuals. They have a very active and impressive dive division that I've become involved with and it's just amazing how accomodating diving can be as a sport for people with disabilities (I've seen divers in Israel who are deaf, blind, amputees, varying degress of paralysis, motor dysfunction and cognitive/emotional challenges).

Israel has been extremely progressive in promoting diving as a sport for challenged individuals: there are several dive clubs in Eilat with wheelchair access, adapted equipment and instructors/divemasters who are specially trained in this field. Etgarim also offers classes that enable disabled divers to earn OW and AOW certification.

For further information: http://www.etgarim.org/content.php?id=32

I believe this is a growing area of interest in the US and around the world; I'm extremely glad to see that ScubaBoard has a forum on the subject.

Best wishes to all of you out there who are eager to see the expansion and development of diving as a sport that can accomodate people with disabilities.

 

[pasley]

Thanks for the info. In this months (June 2010) issue of Dive Training magazine on page 30 there is an excellent article on Adaptive SCUBA Diving and it's history(my non-profit is mentioned on page 36). Jim Gatacre founded Handicapped SCUBA Association (HSA) in 1981 and is the original SCUBA certification agency for adaptive scuba. HSA (hsascuba.com) is international in scope. I have met instructors from Russia, Germany, Tongo, and other locations and Jim returned from Croatia 14 May 2010 certifying more instructors there.

SCUBA is an adaptive sport. We are all adaptive divers as none of us were meant to be underwater. That said it easily accommodates most handicapped. June 6th my non-profit (www.DisabledVeteransScubaProject.org) will be starting another class in Southern California. At present we have applications from disabled veterans as follows: 2 quadriplegic, 3 paraplegic, 1 blind Veterans as well as from 6 PTSD/TBI/Poly-Trauma combat veterans from Iraq/Afghanistan). I am still reviewing medical forms so I can't say all will be in the class, but I can say we will have fun.

I note you are from Chicago. Dive Heart (an HSA in action organization) is in Illinois just outside Chicago. Jim Elliott founder of Dive Heart is an HSA Course Director and his non-profit trains adaptive divers there as well as sending him around the country training Instructors to be HSA Instructors.

 

[joyceschur]

Excellent point, Pasley! I never thought of it that way, but you're absolutely right. Thanks for your response and best of wishes with your new class!