PDIC- What in the WORLD are yall thinking?

[boulderjohn]

I have been working with Santyna for 3 years now and she is the go to person for whatever you need. She has processed certs for me while I was on the phone and gotten them ready to mail before the call ended. I received an email from her this morning in answer to one that I sent after reading this thread. I can guarantee there will be no attitudes, grumpiness, and certainly no swearing when you call. And please keep yours to a minimum (read don't do it) as she does not appreciate nor ever use that kind of language. EVER. So be nice and you will get genuinely good customer service by a very professional young lady.

Good talking to you last night Trace. See ya at DEMA.

Jim, maybe you should offer to be the new representative to the RSTC.

 

[BabyDuck]

dear trace,

lay off the pink dive gear.

love,

marci

 

[Trace Malinowski]

dear trace,

lay off the pink dive gear.

love,

marci

Research shows pink is also associated with breast cancer.

I'm only telling you because I care.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Jim, maybe you should offer to be the new representative to the RSTC.

That would be a sight I'd pay money to see. In all seriousness there are far more qualified people and those with the time and finances to do it. I'd just cause a ruckus. And maybe a few coniptions. Might generate a few of those at DEMA as it is:shocked2:.

 

[txaggie08]

I have been working with Santyna for 3 years now and she is the go to person for whatever you need. She has processed certs for me while I was on the phone and gotten them ready to mail before the call ended. I received an email from her this morning in answer to one that I sent after reading this thread. I can guarantee there will be no attitudes, grumpiness, and certainly no swearing when you call. And please keep yours to a minimum (read don't do it) as she does not appreciate nor ever use that kind of language. EVER. So be nice and you will get genuinely good customer service by a very professional young lady.

Good talking to you last night Trace. See ya at DEMA.

Jim I'm glad to hear that. Believe me, I'm a 911/police dispatcher......I don't loose my temper on the phone unless I'm REALLY pushed. I may have to give them a call and see if a replacement OW card could be sent just to have a copy of it to put in my logs/records(even my cert # would work)

 

[Rhenry]

You mean like the rstc? Oh that would be just great. Look at the job they have done to keep standards high and insure quality training. Right. A central agency made up of the various agencies now. Whose standards do you model it on? The highest or the lowest. LA county program standards, YMCA standards(they were the first national cert agency), or one of the newer ones that allows someone to be certed in a weekend? No what is needed is an honest comparison of agency standards in an easily accessible place so that potential students can compare them and choose the one that suits them best. Along with reviews of each program by random grads of the ow programs.


The issue you address is just what I am responding to, a total lack of any real training program. Currently we have a cottage industry, each making their own rules and programs. We have almost anyone certifying almost anyone to dive, it is a complete mess. As this outfit amply demonstrates just what is wrong with our current path.
What we need is to set the standards high enough to insure safe, trained competent divers, and make it affordable. It must also be done in a reasonable amount of time. It will not be like RSTC that goes to the lowest common denominator, but rather we need to set the bar up to a higher standard. Some go way over the top in so far as training is concerned, and others are less than competent.
A comparison of agencies would be nice, but will never be a reality. Trademarks and copyright infringements and other business practices will make this impossible. With this reality in front of us, the only real approach is a single certification agency, with the ability to hold instructors accountable and have the ability to withhold compensation. The only real way to keep the program standards real is to penalize those who do not instruct the students iaw the established standards.

 

[wedivebc]

I was just revisiting this thread and wanted to clarify something. I need to choose my words more carefully when posting on these forums especially when in a negative context.
My comment that PDIC sucked was directed at the administration end of the agency and after becoming frustrated with late or "lost" cert cards and having to deal with frustrated customers I moved on.
As an agency PDIC still hold one of the highest training standards out there and although many of the manuals are rather dated there are nuggets of information you won't find in many of the largest training agency's manuals.
I sure hope they pull their act together because they did really have something at one time.

 

[Thalassamania]

I'm not disagreeing with you (or agreeing) I don't know. Can you give us a comparison that demonstrates the quality of PDIC standards.

 

[wedivebc]

I'm not disagreeing with you (or agreeing) I don't know. Can you give us a comparison that demonstrates the quality of PDIC standards.

OK for instance the PDIC basic nitrox course not only goes into the use of the typical Dalton formulas but also explains procedures for O2 cleaning and formulas for PP blending.
There was a discussion on one of the forums (might have been here) about how much actual gas a diver surfacing at NDL would have dissolved in their tissues. After much discussion among the usual Dr wannabes and scuba scientists the number that seemed to be agreed upon is the same number given in the PDIC OW manual.

 

[Thalassamania]

With all due respect, neither of those items are particularly telling of a significant difference in quality ... at least from where I sit.