Also another thought and I am not bashing so please take no offense. A Dr goes through a little bit of schooling to become one. Your normal Family Practice Doc, goes through the same 8 years as the DMO. But the DMO goes through another 3 months (in the Military 8hrs / day M-F) to learn diving and diving medicine. That being said one must not discount an FP Dr that is a diver, because He has extensive medical training and knows diving. The difference between a DMO and an FP Doc that dives to put it simply would be Decom tables, Meds to use or not use, and physical eliminators. Yes the DMO is your best bet in a diving emergency but the FP doc knows his **** in A&P so if he is also a diver he will know... Now I have been working the ED when a diver came in and the ED Doc was stumped and called an AGE, "some sort of DCS" it took me about 2 minutes to call my Navy bros and get this guy to the chamber within 15 minutes. Ya just like a stroke on surfacing left face paralized. But the thing that burned my azz was that the Dr would not listen to me even though I showed him my DMT ID. It took me to call the Navy DMO to convinc him.UGH!! :doh:
Unconsciousness/Blocked Airway/Embolism
- Thread starter Rick Murchison
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wolf eel:
Yes Derek, I do understand that he is a Doctor who dives, not a DMO (Diving Medical Officer). What I also understand is that a Doctor who dives will combine his medical knowledge with what he then learns about diving physics and physiology. Thus, he is a handy guy to know, if you are a diver with a related medical question.
Cheers!
Aquadoc68:
Yeah well, you know how some Docs can be. Nobody knows anything about anything but them! I have a similar but even more rediculous story from the guy who trained me, and he is an ex-Navy Seal Team Medic, and Technical Director for a Hyperbaric Medicine Center!!!! :11:
Cheers!
BJD DMT :doctor:
Team medics(SF, SEAL,PJ's,Navy DMT's) are usually S*** hot on diving medicine. Please do tell. I have worked with all and was only shocked with one. People are people and make mistakes but as I have seen the Navy guys are at the top of the heap and I'm an Army DMT. So if you do not to put it public PM me I am curious.
pufferfish
Contributor
BigJetDriver69:
Docs, what about pilots?! My only near death experience was at the hands of one of your colleagues
People place far too much emphasis on credentials in this world and not enough on experience and judgment. This seems to be a North American problem in my opinion.
I used to work full-time emergency for six years and one of the Canadian Forces DMOs worked in the same department so as to keep his clinical skills up as all he was doing were chamber runs and diving physicals during the day. He told me after fifteen years of that he was bored.
Needless to say he wouldn't work any midnight shifts as he wasn't "comfortable" intubating patients alone without backup during the night. During the nightshifts anesthesia and the resp techs were only on call from home so the lone ED doc at night was it for the first twenty minutes of all emergencies in the hospital. He was a nice guy and knew a ton about diving medicine, but for everything else he needed the daytime specialists to back him up when the merde hit the fan.
Give me the old pilot with who can fly them all and has good judgment over the young bold guy with all the letters after his name but poor clinical judgement!
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