Rescue Diver course

Please register or login

Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.

Benefits of registering include

  • Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
  • A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
  • You can make this box go away

Joining is quick and easy. Log in or Register now!

jejton

Contributor
Messages
171
Reaction score
87
Location
Florida
# of dives
50 - 99
(Please move if this is the incorrect forum).
I'd like to get input from others as to when it is appropriate to take a Rescue Diver course (PADI or equivelant). Should one have a certain amount or variety of dives? Certain amount of diving? Etc Etc. What should one look for in an instructor or course (aside from rapport)? I realize there is the agency's course requiremenets and then there's what an instructor may actually teach that can go above and beyond that. Does the dive agency matter?
I am PADI AOW, EANI certified with about 60 or so dives, warm water from ~100ft to shallow beach dives. I am interested in this to epand my skill set and for pratical purposes, to be a better dive buddy, especially if my SO decides to start diving. I do have a medical background so am comfortable with the medical aspect (CPR, etc) but recognize that I am still a fairly new diver and don't want to get ahead of myself.
 
Now is a good time for you. I totally understand and respect wanting to get some experience and not just collect cards, but that's totally consistent with doing it now.
 
I think every diver should take the course. If I were to get into trouble on a dive I’d rather my buddy be trained to help me.

I don’t believe in waiting until you are experienced enough or fit enough. It is about doing what you can with the strength you have. Almost every dive I have done there have been other divers or beach goers around that could help remove a diver from the water if needed.
 
Now is the time. There is not much diving experience needed for rescue diver.

I had people in my course that couldnt hold position in the water and did only do the owd and aowd dives. No fun dives.
That might be a litle fast, but they passed aswell.

Most exercises are on the surface or in shallow water. So its not really that much diving.

Its a good course and everyone should do it
 
Agreed. I think any time after you have a few dives under your belt you should go for it. I like the 50+ "thumb suck" and this is purely for my reasoning of letting you get some dives in to learn and understand your new diving skill before loading on more knowledge with rescue.

Adequate care given is better than perfect care4 withheld as we say. So anything better should realistically help.
 
Do it.
 
I did AOW at about 80 dives in 2004 and RD at about 120 dives in 2005. Before that, I was gaining dive experience, in a wide variety of conditions. Where I was diving, there were no depth limitations on my diving before I had AOW. Worked out well for me. There are pros and cons in deciding timing of training.
 
When you are comfortable in the water (i.e. not falling over on yourself, can control your positioning moderately well, etc), then you are ready for the Rescue diver course in my opinion. If you can drop down carefully and "land" on/at a diver, then bring both of you up controlling buoyancy, you can do about the most "complicated" diving in the course imo. The vast majority of the course doesn't need you to have any diving skills really.
 
For me the course was almost entirely on the surface, there were only like 3 drills down underwater, plus part of the scenarios. I think I spent a grand total of 30 minutes bottom time across the two days. So little that I didn't even log it. So I think it is reasonable to take it anytime after AOW, as long as your buoyancy isn't horrible.
 
As long as you have decent buoyancy and control, you want to avoid a silt out searching for or recovering a diver. As mentioned a lot of the work is on the surface so capable but not perfect is a good time and some experience in your regular dive conditions. It is a course that should be promoted more, probably the best as far as expanding awareness for newer divers.
 

Back
Top Bottom