Recompression procedure
The Irish Naval Service provide a recompression service to civilian divers (from the 2nd of May 2008). We (CUH Emergency Medicine Service) will be providing clinical advice and support. Doing this will involve the following:
- Divers requiring recompression will first be assed at CUH ED (having been transferred b
- Any investigations or clinical interventions (e.g chest drains etc.) will be done here prior to transferring the patient to the RCC at Hawlbowline.
- The Irish Naval Service and ambulance service will be alerted by us (Medico Cork) as per the agreed procedure.
- Following the alert, the ambulance service will proceed as per their SOP.
- The chamber will take about one hour to be readied.
- The diver will be accompanied to Hawlbowline by a nurse at least, and by the clinician (those on this list and/or Dr.John Murphy INS) if necessary.
- It will not usually be necessary for the clinician to be in attendance on site for the treatment.
Clinical advice and support are available from the Royal Navy Duty Diving Medical Officer 0044 7831 151 523. We should of course be in a position to support each other.
- It may be necessary to enter the chamber on occasion. All clinicians working in the emergency department in CUH will have a ‘diving medical’ and we should all have the experience of being compressed to 18m. There is nothing too complex about the medical except it involves spirometry and an audiogram.
Links
- Ambulance procedure for potential recompressioin cases
- Institute of Naval Medicine, Alverstoke, Gosport, Hamphshire, PO12 2DL (0044 23 9276 8026)
- Duty Diving Medical Officer 0044 7831 151 523
- Undersea Medicine Division of the UK Royal Navy
- Drowning
