Top 10 Questions To Ask Before Diving

Thanks to Chris Rule for finding this excellent website! Copy & paste this in to your browser:

http://scubadiverlife.com/2011/01/30/the-top-10-questions-you-need-to-ask-before-diving

Ocean Quiz

Thanks to Bill Davis for sending this link to National Geographic's website. If you'd like to be quizzed on several different ocean-related topics, copy & paste this link:

http://ocean.nationalgeographic.com/ocean/oceans-quiz/

The February webcast will be on the benefits of DAN's insurance program and Air Assist. If this presentation doesn't encourage you to join Dan and purchase dive insurance, nothing will.

Interesting Reading

Here's a good article on the bends.

http://www.cdnn.info/news/safety/s100405.html

Back in the Saddle

Happy New Year!!

Sorry for the long layoff. When it gets cold in North Florida, I tend to hibernate for a while. To make matters worse, the site where I get most of my articles for the blog, Cyber Diver News Network, has been down until I checked it for the upteenth time tonight and found it back online.

Anyway, it's time to get back in the saddle. Since the diving weather has been less than ideal, NOW is the time to get your equipment inspected and serviced for the soon-to-come diving season. Please don't wait until you have booked a dive trip to check out your gear. You will most assuredly be disappointed when that o-ring ruptures or that burst disk bursts immediately before jumping in the water.

Another thing to consider NOW is that you will need a passport to travel outside the United States. Passports take several weeks (if you're lucky) to be processed, so you better start now if you plan to dive with Marshall on any of his world-wide excursions.

I have spoken with DAN about a webcast for the February meeting. The subject will be determined in the next few days and I will publish it herein. With respect to a few complaints received about the webcasts, we will be doing things a bit differently this year. The business meeting will start promptly at 7 PM. The Club President will keep things moving briskly so that we conduct all necessary business by approximately 7:30. At 7:30 (give or take a few minutes), the webcast will begin. If the webcast runs a little long (20-30 minutes is desired), club members may stay until it's finished or leave early if they need to move on. I think this approach will satisfy everyone while not degrading the quality or integrity of the webcast. As always, your feedback is welcome.

Now that CDNN is back online, I will post a few articles in the next few days.

Thanks, and dive safe!!

PADI BASIC COURSE

I have nothing against PADI, so don't assume that I have an axe to grind. I'm like CNN, I report, you decide. You may need to copy & paste this into your browser.

http://www.cdnn.info/news/editorial/o050620.html

Lionfish Toxicity

For those of you who attended the September meeting, Chris Rule asked a question regarding whether the Atlantic lionfish was more venonous than other lionfish species. Here is DAN's spokesman, Brian Harper's response:

Hey Billy,

Thanks again for hosting last night, and thanks to your group for all the great questions. Regarding the inquiry about whether lionfish in the Atlantic or Caribbean are less toxic than Indo-Pacific lionfish, the answer seems to be that there is no difference in toxicity. The primary reason is that these are not two distinct species—they are one in the same: Pterois volitans. They have not been present in the Atlantic/Caribbean for long enough to evolve into a different (more or less venomous) species.

CPR Procedures For Divers

Info on CPR

DAN News
Hands-Only CPR Statement from DAN Education
Last Updated: 7/29/2010 4:53:36 PM

The American Heart Association recently released a position statement, intended to clarify cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training for lay rescuers, regarding the use of compression-only CPR without delivering rescue breaths. This statement was issued to “amend and clarify the “2005 American Heart Association (AHA) Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and Emergency Cardiovascular Care (ECC)” for bystanders who witness an adult out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest.”

Extensive research, completed since the 2005 guidelines were released, indicates the survival rates for full CPR are no better, and no worse, than compressions-only CPR. These studies discuss only the situation where a collapse was witnessed and only pertains to adults in non-choking and non-drowning scenarios.

The idea is that if the perceived barrier of delivering rescue breaths as part of CPR is removed, bystanders will be more likely to administer care to a collapsed adult.

While this change is important with regards to lay rescuers providing emergency care in the event of a collapse on the street, it will not affect the care of an unconscious diver. Loss of consciousness with cardiac arrest in water must always be assumed to include elements of drowning. For this reason, full CPR is still recommended. For the most part, the proposed changes do not translate to the diving environment.

The AHA ECC Committee admits this in their statement: “The AHA ECC Committee acknowledges that all victims of cardiac arrest will benefit from delivery of high-quality chest compressions but that some cardiac arrest victims (e.g., pediatric victims and victims of drowning, trauma, airway obstruction, acute respiratory diseases, and apnea) may benefit from additional interventions taught in a conventional CPR course. Therefore, the Committee continues to encourage the public to obtain training in CPR to learn the psychomotor skills required to care for a wide range of cardiovascular- and respiratory-related medical emergencies.”