Accident Assessment: An 37-year-old male diver was going to be diving for the first time from a boat. His previous experience when traveling by boat indicated he was prone to seasickness. In order to prevent seasickness he obtained a prescription for a medication patch from his doctor. The diver had not used this medication before. He applied the patch about 1 hour prior to departure. He was able to tolerate the trip to the first dive site, which was to 75 feet (23 meters) for 42 min using compressed air. There were no problems, and the diver and his buddy enjoyed exploring the outside of a wreck. They had a 60 min surface interval. During the interval, the diver noticed he was not feeling quite normal, but attributed this to seasickness. They moved to a reef and completed their second dive was 55 feet (16.7 meters) for 45 min. While at depth, his buddy noticed the diver seemed to have difficulty communicating. After returning to the boat the diver seemed agitated, confused and very fatigued. The boat crew placed him on oxygen for the 40 min ride back to shore with no apparent improvement. They had called ahead, and EMS met them at the dock and transported the diver to the closest hospital. What do you suspect is wrong and why?
Posted on: Fri, 19 Sep 2014 15:15:47 +0000
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