There is a scene from the movie "Ffolkes" in which Roger Moore is flown aboard an oil production platform in the North Sea as the title character, Rufus Excalibur Ffolkes (he says it's spelled with two small f's), to assess a terrorist hijacking by Anthony Perkins' character. Ffolkes suggests that the helicopter that dropped him off leave with three passengers effectively getting them off a mined rig. He suggested they take the three youngest regardless of sex because the old have had their chances.
A ruptured eardrum can lead to long-term vertigo and dizziness. Having suffered that for 2.5 years following decompression sickness, you do not want to risk it, believe me. I decided to die through VSED (voluntary stoppage of eating and drinking) because I couldn't take the nightmare any longer. I was in the process of preparing for suicide when my body turned a corner.
My NACD cave instructor taught me to shut down the post with the long hose if my buddy jeopardized my survival in any way. In turn, I taught my rescue and cave students whatever decision you make to help or not help is one you are going to have to live with. Given that situation, I could live with ascending to the surface and alerting the crew. But once I alerted the crew, I'd also be able to make another attempt at descending since surfacing would reset equalization. If any swelling or congestion prevented a descent, I could deal with the probable outcome for a potential victim by aborting the attempt.
If I was diving with my wife, the closest I ever came to that was when my cave instructor ex-girlfriend picked out a dress and did an impromptu beach ceremony as a land drill so to speak, so if she wanted to go save him, have at it.