I feel the need to pull out some definitions.. put us all in agreement.
Medicine: A substance or preparation used in treating disease.
Therapy: Remedial treatment of a bodily disorder.
Both are from Websters Ninth New Collegiate.
First off I feel that in order to administer oxygen to another person you should be trained. The O2 provider class is suitable training. It teaches proper use of the different types of delivery systems. ( simple mask, non-rebreather, etc) There is a new class out that teaches the use of the Bag valve mask. I don't know if it gets into oral airways.
Since we are talking more from a point of O2 therapy in the case of a accident or possible accident I will stick to this subject.
Alban, I agree with you. If I am dive master on a boat and someone messes up bad enough they feel they need O2, I am going to administer that O2, but I am also going to encourage the person seek additional medical attention, and if there is a refusal that person will give me that refusal in writing with a witness.
I will not labour the point, but it would seem you do not believe I should be entitled to use oxygen on the surface following any dive as an integral part of my decompression schedule solely because its "administration is a medical procedure" and therefore I should only use it on the surface when there is immediate and obvious evidence of DCI.
I agree with half of this Dr. Thomas. At the moment (I reserve the right to change my opinion) I feel if you
need O2 not so much you have DCI symptoms but you have done something that could cause DCI (Blown a deco stop) you can have it from the emergency kit. If you are deco diving and wish to bring your own bottle of 100% O2 to breath off of thats your business, but you can't have my emergency supply.
In short... if its an emergency... its yours. You don't have to show signs for it to be an emergency. If you use it I will encourage you to seek further medical attention.. If you choose to deny medical attention I'll take that in writing.
TwoBit