Health & Safety for divers Decompression Illnesses (DCI) or ‘the bends’, occurs when bubbles of gas are trapped inside the body of a diver. Symptoms include muscle and joint pain, skin rashes, tingling sensations and in more serious cases neurological problems and even paralysis. Initial symptoms can be very subtle but gradually worsen over time, and can occur within a few minutes to 48 hours after the dive. Thankfully DCI is extremely rare with only a small percentage of divers needing to be treated each year. Statistics show that only a very small fraction of the thousands who dive in Thailand every year are treated for DCI. It is important to remember that Decompression Illness can be difficult to diagnose and in many cases DCI symptoms are similar to a lot of other medical problems that don’t require treatment inside a hyperbaric chamber. This is why it is important for an injured diver to visit a hospital to be completely checked out and diagnosed correctly.

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If a diver has DCI then they will need to breathe oxygen under pressure in a hyperbaric chamber. This helps break down the bubbles of gas that are trapped in their body. The time they need to spend inside the chamber can vary between 2 to 5 or more hours depending on the severity of the symptoms. On average a patient needs to receive 2 treatments inside the chamber before their symptoms completely disappear.

DCI can be extremely expensive to treat, with the average cost around 189,000 Thai Baht per patient. In the majority of cases the diver will either have specific diving insurance or travel insurance that will cover the cost of treatment. Unfortunately some travel insurance companies still classify diving as a high risk activity and as a result will not cover diving accidents. Regrettably the first time the patient is made aware of this is after they have been treated!

As a result the Badalveda Diving Medicine Network offers membership cards to individual divers that can provide extra protection in the unlikely event that an accident occurs. These cards cost only 300 Baht each and provide a discounted rate for hyperbaric treatment at all Badalveda Hyperbaric chambers in Thailand for a period of 1 year from the cards issue date.

Although Badalveda have their own membership cards, they advise divers to obtain personal insurance which includes coverage for diving. To find out more, visit
www.dive-master.net For more information on Badalveda talk to your local dive centre or call the Diving Medicine Hotlines: +66 (0)81 989 9482, (0)86 272 4618.

Divers can call these numbers 24 hours a day for advice and assistance about diving injuries, evacuation services or general diving medicine questions, but please bear in mind that these are emergency contact numbers!

There are a number of medical problems that affect a person’s fitness to dive. While someone may feel fine and may be taking medication to treat an illness, it can be very difficult to determine what will happen when he or she is placed under pressure. Diving with a pre-existing medical condition may not only put the diver in danger, but also his or her dive partners.

Diving Insurance

Diving is a very safe activity, but as in all aspects of life, things can go wrong. Just as a skier can break a bone or a general holidaymaker can get sick, a diver can fall foul of some problems.

Medical bills and equipment costs are often more than an individual can afford, so there is a need for specialist dive insurance. It’s true that many travel insurance policies cover diving, but these are modifications to general policies that were never designed for an activity as specialist as diving.

You were probably enticed into diving for its adventure and exploration, so it stands to reason that along with the equipment and training you buy specifically designed insurance.

Reputable dive insurance companies offer policies for all levels of diver and all sectors of the dive industry. After all, a company insuring the professionals of an industry is also going to make sure its policies for general divers are top notch.

These companies also update their policies regularly to keep up with current trends in travel and diving. One of the most recent updates for travellers to look for is diving day specific insurance that can be bought at the resort. This means even if you leave home with no intention of diving and therefore have no specific insurance, you can still cover yourself for the duration of your course or dive trip.

When buying insurance for diving don’t be seduced by the lowest price. Look at what the policy will cover you for. Read the policy details. Check the depth limit, the exclusions and the costs being paid out. If possible, check the reputation of the insurance company. A company that has been operating for a number of years is often a better bet.