Health Matters
Photo: Simon Rogerson
Screen test: Are you f_i t to be in the water?
Self-declaration forms for medical diving fi tness have seen a huge drop in the number of divers going to
see a qualifi ed doctor to ensure they are healthy enough to dive. Dr Anke Fabian outlines why we should
be putting as much, if not more, emphasis on checking our body as we do our equipment.
Diving continues to grow in popularity around the world. With possibly fatal mistake, because a self-declaration neither substitutes
technological developments, it has also seen a growth in extended range a medical check-up nor does it necessarily reveal the truth. Another
diving. Through more sophisticated equipment and use of mixed gases important fact is that the diver, in signing the declaration of health,
available in technical diving, one can reach considerably greater depths releases the dive centre of its liability in case of an accident. The diver may
and extended bottom times. even not be covered be his/her own insurance in the event of an accident.
Among scuba divers there is now an almost balanced gender ratio. As a doctor, it is my belief that the dive center should refer divers to
The age limits have clearly shifted in both directions, with children a doctor who is familiar with the specifi c aspects of diving, even if all
diving from the age of eight, all the way up to divers of 70 or over. The questions are answered negatively in the medical questionnaire. In Egypt,
positive eff ect of reduced gravity underwater means diving is also one has doctors at hand, trained to undertake a decent check-up. We
used theraputically. This implies an increase in the number of disabled recommend people make the eff ort to get checked by a dive doctor who
and chronically ill divers. All of these factors confront the supervising is familiar with the medical aspects of diving rather than just search for
physician with medically borderline situations. their nearest doctor.
The trend towards ever more remote diving destinations, often in places In most countries, there are no legal provisions for the screening of
with inadequate emergency health care, highlights the importance of a sport divers. There are provisions, however, for professional divers and
detailed medical screening for sports divers. Special problems associated hyperbaric workers, but usually only in relations to the employer’s liability
with diving can occur in remote waters. insurance. So it would seem only the demand of diving associations
and dive centers can put a certain amount of pressure on the divers to
However, a thorough dive medical examination is sometimes not
undergo a medical dive examination.
possible, or sadly, not required. Usually, a dive center will forward a
questionnaire to the diver as a self-declaration of his/her medical history The maintenance of a cylinder or a regulator - as a matter of course - is
and will let it pass when a diver answers all questions negatively. A left to an expert, and the costs are paid without complaint, as this is an
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Issue 5 March - April ‘10
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