dive buddy got bent

[tonka97]

Informative thread.

DAN members need to understand the fine print of their contracts....and the limitations of the ERs they must utilize.

I always have both AED and plenty of O2; "I don't trust nobody"....Willie Dixon

 

[bowlofpetunias]

Informative thread.

DAN members need to understand the fine print of their contracts....and the limitations of the ERs they must utilize.

I always have both AED and plenty of O2; "I don't trust nobody"....Willie Dixon

Hey I am not the only one with an AED and O2 when we dive kewl.. I remember reading in my DAN insurance that it doesn't kick in until I am a certain ways from home. That may be why there is such a change in the way this situation was handled as compared to the one reported here earlier

 

[SkimFisher]

You made to the ER, right? What else is DAN supposed to do? Your expectation seems unrealistic. Waiting for hours in the ER is not unheard of. It sounds like triage worked the way it was designed to.

I'm more interested in how she managed to get bent.

 

[bsee65]

This thread is an eye-opener. All I have ever seen have been raves about how great DAN is. Now, we're seeing that they don't appear to be quite as single-mindedly dedicated to the assistance of any diver who might need them. I'm also reading about checking the fine print? That's not the way DAN is normally portrayed, and the last thing you want from your insurance provider or medical advisor is a negative surprise. I would really like to see a response from DAN on this complaint.

At a minimum, I would like to have seen the triage nurse contact a DAN doctor for assistance in evaluating the patient's condition. It is easy to believe that DCS is not something an inland nurse might be familiar enough with to evaluate correctly. I suspect the OP would have a feel for whether or not the triage nurse could fully understand the status and risk to the patient.

I won't say the end result was wrong. Treatment of a few hours of O2 with no chamber ride might be what the doc would have prescribed if consulted. I'm no medical professional.

 

[joe8mofo]

Jimmy71,

What lake were both diving at when this occurred?

 

[bsee65]

You made to the ER, right? What else is DAN supposed to do? Your expectation seems unrealistic. Waiting for hours in the ER is not unheard of. It sounds like triage worked the way it was designed to.

I'm more interested in how she managed to get bent.

What else was DAN supposed to do? Really? If you read the thread, you can see exactly what the OP expected that DAN was supposed to do, and apparently others would have expected more from them as well.

How is it unrealistic to expect that someone who is evaluating the condition of a patient has the necessary facts and understanding of a condition to make such an evaluation?

As far as how she got bent, I think it might be appropriate for the OP to post the full details of the dive. I suspect he didn't because the focus and purpose of starting the thread was to discuss the DAN and medical response to the incident. Digging into the cause of the hit would be off-topic relative to that discussion.

 

[SkimFisher]

How is it unrealistic to expect that someone who is evaluating the condition of a patient has the necessary facts and understanding of a condition to make such an evaluation?

The same way it's unrealistic for you to think your mechanic can change your spark-plugs over the phone...

He can tell you where to go and maybe some advice on what to look for - but other than that you're on your own.

 

[phaust]

since my rescue diver course, i always add hospital and evacuation plan while doing my diving plan for local diving just in case of.

i was expecting more follow up from DAN too..

interesting thread!

 

[piikki]

I would be interested in hearing what would have ensued if the patient/patient's advocate weren't knowledgeable about O2 and did not themselves request continuation of the O2 treatment during the ER stay. Or did/would DAN have jumped in?

 

[bsee65]

The same way it's unrealistic for you to think your mechanic can change your spark-plugs over the phone...

He can tell you where to go and maybe some advice on what to look for - but other than that you're on your own.

I think your analogy is flawed, so I'll fix it for you.

I drive a Ferrari (I dive), and although there are a lot of great mechanics (doctors) out there, they don't all have experience with Ferraris (dive medicine). Since I like to drive around to places where there might not be a Ferrari specialist (dive in places where I don't know there's a great dive doc on call), I have signed a contract with Ferrari (DAN) to have a specialist at the ready in case I need assistance. While I don't expect Ferrari's mechanic (DAN's dive doc) to fix me directly, I do expect that they can consult with the mechanics (ER staff) I end up with to ensure they understand the unique issues associated with working on a Ferrari (dive medicine). In that way, I hope to get the best diagnosis and care for my car (body) so that nothing is overlooked resulting in a breakdown (I don't end up dead or crippled). I'd hate to have some little knocking noise (DCS symptom controlled by O2) that seems trivial to a mechanic without Ferrari training (doc without dive expertise) pushed aside when it could be a symptom of a serious issue needing prompt attention.

If the mechanic (ER guys) won't take the consult from the expert (DAN docs), especially when I've told them I have them available on call, then they are being negligent and I've probably ended up at the wrong shop (hospital). Since I paid Ferrari (DAN) a fair chunk of change, and I've heard nothing but praise for how invested they are in helping customers in need at every opportunity, I expect that they will at least try to intercede on my behalf.

==

Simply put, if this is the way that DAN works, that's fine with me. Of course, everyone, especially the people who are paying them money, should know exactly what they are paying for. No one should be disappointed by the level of service received as the OP is. No one posting on this thread should be surprised that DAN acted as they did, but some people are. If this thread serves to clarify what DAN will or won't do and sets peoples' expectation correctly, that's a good thing.