HSA vs PADI

[agesilaus]

My wife just finished her OW class a week ago and the instructor emailed her a temp card from HSA. I see that HSA is the Handicapped Scuba Assoc. but we were expecting PADI. Is this switch going to cause us any problems with dive boats?

The card doesn't even have a Diver Number on it,


BK

 

[oly5050user]

Contact your instructor and ask..some operators are not set up for handicap divers. There are probably also restrictions on that certification also.
do you have a PADI training log book that the instructor. Signed off on?
If you do then it should have been aPADI card. It really should have clear what course she was taking .

 

[agesilaus]

As handicaps go hers is not major, she doesn't have full use of her right hand and arm. She mainly needs help getting her gear on.

BK

 

[tursiops]

Does her card have level A, B, or C on it? As a temp card, it may not have all the info on it.

 

[pasley]

PADI sent one Director of training and NAUI sent two Directors of Training to a conference to help write the standards for the Handicapped SCUBA Association International (HSA). HSA has been around for over 30 years and is in 45 countries. It is a recognized certification agency. You should not have any issue with that certification and it tells dive operators that she has been trained to dive with her handicap.

HSA Certifies divers at three levels, depending on demonstrated abilities while SCUBA diving, not based on any preconceived limitations of a specific disability. Example: Dive buddy of mine has an injury at C6-7, incomplete quadriplegia. He can use his arms, but does not have full use of them and cannot fully open his hands. He is a certified diver to dive with any open water dive buddy. He just needs a bit of help (don't we all) getting his gear on. Biggest problem I have with him is keeping up with him, particularly on the surface. He also races demolition derby, go-carts, handcycles, does marathons, plays wheelchair rugby. He set a world record for the longest handcycle ride of 776 miles in 11 days from Salt Lake City Utah to Huntington Beach California. That is over a pass that is a tad over 4000 feet!

HSA certifies at three levels depending on the demonstrated ability of the diver. Level A, certified to dive with any open water diver as their dive buddy. Level B, she cannot, or chooses not to be responsible for rescuing her dive buddy so she is certified to dive with any open water dive buddy and her dive buddy has to have a dive buddy (so that is a 3 person dive team) to rescue her dive buddy (note that is her dive buddy, not her) if something happens. Level C, she requires a specially trained dive buddy certified by HSA as at least a dive buddy (or higher) for an adaptive diver and that diver needs a dive buddy of at least rescue level and preferably also HSA trained as a dive buddy to rescue her dive buddy. But if her card carries any limitation, it is because that is the level of standards she successfully challenged.

HSA also trains divers to scuba dive in the world they live in. The diver knows how to access the dive operation and the boat for how they (the diver) will make it work. All the diver needs is for the dive operator to give them an opportunity to access the situation, come up with a plan and go diving. Yes the crew may have to help a bit with getting on the boat, or off, but they help us supposedly able bodies divers too. The adaptive diver will remember them when it comes time for a tip.

Speaking of which (NOTE OFF TOPIC NON-DIVING INFO FOLLOWS) an attempt to break my friends 776 mile handcycle ride is being mounted by another Utah man with quadriplegia. He is in the fundraising stage for a planned 1,100 mile ride from Idaho Falls Idaho to Huntington Beach California. If you want to help fund this man with his challenge see www.indiegogo.com/projects/spinal-ride--2 the fundraising ends April 13, 2014.

 

[knotical]

As you describe your wife's circumstance, it sounds as if she might qualify both for the HSA Level A diver card and for the PADI Open Water card. If that is the case, she should try to get her instructor to issue both.
But whatever the circumstance, it makes sense to talk with the instructor to have the details explained.

If she gets only the HSA card, it should be a simple matter to talk with the boat operator to determine if there are any issues. In general, the most likely issue could be just that some operators might not be familiar with HSA - giving you an opportunity to do a bit of educating.

 

[agesilaus]

Well apparently he classed her as a B based on buddy breathing. He let her make one attempt and then he got in the way and I lost the aux reg mouthpiece. He said he was going to let her do it again but failed to do so without telling her that it would have this consequence. There is no reason why she cannot do buddy breathing she has full use of her right arm and hand. So I guess we'll have to have some conversation with this fellow. I was really hoping I would never have to see him again frankly. He is a real PITA to dive with.

BK

 

[pasley]

If she meets the standard she can move from B to A easily enough. A dive buddy of mine (we are going to Belize in June to dive, why not come join us?) was a level B diver and now is a level A. Her permanent dive card should be in your hands shortly as the guy who processes them is usually pretty fast about it. The permanent card has a Certification Number on it.

In reading your post about the buddy breathing, I am surprised he did not let her try again, especially since you (the able bodied diver) lost the octopus. But given that she did not successfully challenge the standard of share air, alternate air source as donor (she I assume successfully completed the receive air from alternate air source) then level B is correct. But if she re-test and can do this skill, assuming there are no other skill items in the standards that she performed at the B level, then she may be able to move to level A.