Medical form: practical/ethical quandary

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serf

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Hi, new poster here. I'm 32/M. I had spinal fusion surgery at age 16 for scoliosis. It was successful, and I've been trouble-free since, with no restrictions. I recently enrolled in a PADI Open Water course and marked "yes" to the corresponding question on the form. My GP said I seemed fine, but wouldn't sign off - he wanted to refer me to a specialist. I had to drop the course because this won't happen for another couple of months.

I truthfully answered "no" to all the other questions. I recently moved and hauled all of my boxes by myself. I regularly lift and twirl my 110-pound girlfriend while roughhousing, travel with a heavy backpack, etc. I've never experienced pain, before or after the surgery.

I would be OK with waiting to see the specialist, except they are going to want to blast me with x-rays. I had about a dozen of these before my surgery and it makes me uneasy. (Yes, I am aware of the concepts of ionizing radiation, dose equivalents, relative risk, etc.)

Furthermore, I am worried that this may become a routine ordeal, with different dive operators wanting doctor's notes and doctors wanting to take x-rays every so often in perpetuity. And of course it can't be just any doctor, it has to be a SPINE doctor, which are relatively hard to come by, and God help you if you aren't insured. (I am, for now...) At any point, if one were to decline to sign off -- assuming he is merely covering his own ass and hasn't discovered something like OMG YOUR SPINE IS ABOUT TO BREAK IN HALF -- I would of course feel strongly inclined to go elsewhere and lie on the form.

I guess it's like, what's worse: being honest and settling for a slightly elevated lifetime cancer risk on top of all the hassle, or being dishonest and risking the same kind of back injury that everyone else is risking, healthy or not?

I'm not asking for anyone to tell me to lie. Just venting. It is pretty irritating being in my situation, going through the eLearning, and watching that 90-pound pigtailed sister of the boy on the porch in Deliverance lifting the scuba kit.
 
Don't you have a regular doctor you see from time to time? Does that doctor know your situation? Does that doctor think you can dive?

If so, then all you need is his or her signature saying you can dive. You don't need a specialist.

I have a couple of things I need to say "yes" to on that list. My doctor signs page 2 as required whenever I need it. It really isn't a big deal.
 
Don't you have a regular doctor you see from time to time? Does that doctor know your situation? Does that doctor think you can dive?

If so, then all you need is his or her signature saying you can dive. You don't need a specialist.

I have a couple of things I need to say "yes" to on that list. My doctor signs page 2 as required whenever I need it. It really isn't a big deal.
I don't really have a regular doctor (due to recent moves / lack of health issues / no health insurance), but I did see a GP at a walk-in clinic. He checked me out and said I seemed fine, but wouldn't sign my form because he didn't want to risk anything. He referred me to a spine doc. I don't blame him, he made the prudent decision.
 
In the USA, it is usually only training ops that require such a medical release. Elsewhere (MEX), you may find dive ops asking the same questions. If you give the wrong answer, you will need a current doctor's release or you may not be permitted to dive. So, either keep necessary releases current or provide answers that do not set off any alarms. The op just needs to be covered.
 
Depends on how the question is worded. If it says "do you have a history of any of the following conditions that would prevent you from diving?" then you can answer No since they wouldn't prevent you from diving. Otherwise you might want to find a doc that knows something about diving and barotrauma. I recently had to change physicians and start the entire education process again. Despite what many people think, doctors can be taught.
 
I've had a spinal fusion (neck) and I got the sign off. For OW I had the general and the specialist that did my surgery sign off. Both said absolutely no concern at all about diving with a fusion for me. Only time I've had to go back for a signature was when I took another class with a different instructor/agency. Most times boats just want your cards and a waiver saying you won't sue if the stuff hits the fan.


I bet you could get a walk in clinic doctor to sign it.
 
Some things just are not their business. It does leave you taking the risk, which is as it should be.
 
I have had a spinal fusion. L2-L3-L4. When I did my OW I went to the Doc that did it and he signed off on it. Since then I have my PA sign off. I just print the PADI form, take it in when I have my annual physical and she signs off on it. No problem with taking a class or with any operators and I don't have to lie on the waiver. The first time she signed off on it she asked to give her a couple of days, now she just signs it. She did a little research and read the pages that come with the form.
 
Fused nothing...
Sue has had two vertebrae completely destroyed (motorcycle crash...) and replaced with titanium prosthetic pieces.
She still throws patients around in the ER, dives, and I expect to promote her to black belt in 18 months or so.
You'll need a spine surgeon to sign off, and if you can't get in touch with the one who did your surgery, you're almost certainly going to need some imaging. But assuming the fusion is intact and you're not having problems with it, there's no reason not to expect the surgeon to sign off on the release.
 
The urgent care physician was being lazy, in my opinion. If you had come into my ER, I would have asked you some questions about your surgery, how long ago it was, whether you currently have any symptoms, whether you can carry weight comfortably, etc. I would have signed you off. (I would also have been annoyed with you for dealing with this in an ER, but that's another kettle of fish :) ). But maybe that's because I actually know something about diving . . .
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/perdix-ai/

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