notes - Aquaventure Scuba Diving Club

8
Letters to the editor
letters to the editor
Oxygen First Aid for Scuba
Diving Injuries represents
entry-level training to
educate the general diving
(and qualified non-diving)
public to better recognise
possible dive-related
injuries and to provide
emergency oxygen first aid
while activating the local
emergency medical services
(EMS) and / or arranging for
evacuation to the nearest
available medical facility.
More info
about
the course
oxygen First Aid: the big difference
Last January 1st, like each year for the past few ones, I received
a call from my friend Javier to wish me all the best for 2012 and to
notify me he had just became the grandfather of a precious little girl.
His daughter - the little girl’s mother - asked him to give me a call
to notify me the birth of her daughter. She told him: “you must let
Ramon know; if it would not have been for him, you would never had
been able to meet her…”
All started a few years ago… Back then, I was working as the head
of operations of a scuba diving center at the Costa Brava - Girona,
Spain. I had just finished diving with some students and while I
was taking off the gear aboard the center’s boat, I heard somebody
screaming. I looked over and saw a couple on a speed boat who
were holding something that was in the water. I jumped on the
auxiliary boat and went as fast as I could towards them.
When I came near their boat, I saw they were holding the arm of a
person whose body was entirely immersed. They informed me they
found him floating. I seized him quickly and we lifted him on board of
my boat.
He was not breathing and I could not detect his pulse. His eyes
were half open with mydriatic pupils…. I did not know at that point
how long he had been in the water; probably a few hours, because
he still looked good in spite of the lividity of his face… I did not think
twice: instinctively I gave him a few rescue breaths and started CPR
on him. A few minutes passed and I noticed some changes in his
physical appearance. That prompted me to yell at the people aboard
the diving center boat to start quickly preparing the DAN oxygen
equipment, which is a permanent fixture onboard, while I was
heading towards it at full speed.
I gave instructions to the staff on board to call (channel#16 – phone
call 112) for the EMS to be at the harbour urgently. I requested for
someone to come with me and take us to the harbour as fast as
possible. In the meantime, I kept giving the Oxygen First Aid to the
patient, who had not regained spontaneous breathing yet. I kept
alternating chest compressions with ventilations using the oronasal
resuscitation mask connected to a constant oxygen flow. His gaze
was fixed without giving any signs indicating that he was still alive,
except the change in color and some little convulsions. I thought
that maybe all these efforts were in vain or that, in the best of cases,
he would come out alive but he would be a vegetable for the rest of his
life, living in a coma for ever… Nonetheless I decided to count on him
living, as long as I could keep doing what I was doing with every ounce
of my strength. Practicing CPR, together with the terrible stress of the
moment, can be exhausting. Fortunately the trip to the harbour was
short.
When we got there, thanks to the fact that they had been previously
alerted, we found the emergency medical services waiting for us; they
took over caring for the victim. I gave them the little information I had
and mentally said my goodbyes, with the certainty that I would never
see him again.
About 10 days later, I received a phone call. A man’s voice identified
himself as Javier and he told me he was the man I had rescued. He
explained he had come out of a coma and as soon as he could speak,
requested to be told what had happened. He could not remember
anything except he had been practicing apnea at a depth of about -30
meters when he suffered syncope while ascending. The next thing he
remembered was waking up in the hospital. As soon as he was able to
do so, he wanted to thank me personally. He asked if he could come to
visit me with his wife and his two daughters (ages 15 and 16).
It was a very emotional meeting. He mentioned that he practiced
apnea because he thought scuba diving was a very dangerous
activity... needless to say, I made sure to correct his erroneous
conception. He later ended up taking a diving course with me, together
with his older daughter.
As a result of that incident, a very solid friendship was born which we
perpetuate and celebrate, year after year, especially at Christmas.
Javier and his family say that they will be forever grateful to all people
who took part in his miraculous recuperation, without collateral
damages.
As for me, I would like to extend my gratitude to the solid training
that DAN gave me and underline the fact that giving Oxygen First Aid
made, without a doubt, a great difference.
ramon verdaguer
DAn instructor trAiner # 26255
# 47 (1st Quarter 2012) 9