SAFETY continued screening by the TSA, which could involve leaving shoes and light jackets on during screening and, in some countries, sen- ior travelers have priority boarding privileges. There is one other area where the diver’s age is important. That is when it comes to health maintenance. It is strongly recommended that beginning at age 45, divers have an annual physical examination preferably from a healthcare profes-
stand how important scuba diving or snorkeling is to your lifestyle. As we know, scuba diving and snorkeling can be very beneficial to your health both physical and mental (March issue of Scuba Diving Industry Magazine –“The Mental Health Benefits of Scuba Diving.”) If your healthcare professional knows that time in the water scuba diving or snorkeling is im- portant to you, they are less likely to simply exercise a cautious
approach when evaluating your fitness to dive by simply saying you should hang up your fins. However, and this is extremely important, diving or snorkeling should NEVER be so impor- tant that engaging in it puts you or others at risk.
sional familiar with diving medicine and your life priori- ties. It is pretty obvious that the person evaluating your fitness to dive should have some fa- miliarity with diving medicine so that they can make the cor- rect decisions. If, however, they
Jean-Michel Cousteau @ 87 years young.
are not schooled in diving and hyperbaric medicine, the DAN Medical Department can be a valuable resource for your healthcare professional when it comes to evaluating your medical fitness to dive. If you are looking for a healthcare professional that has some training in diving medicine, the Medical Department at DAN has a Physician Referral Net- work with a list of hundreds of physicians of many special- ties. The DAN Medical Department can give you or your physician contact information for someone who has training in diving medicine. The other thing I recommend is that your physician under-
There may be organizations, including tour operators and dive charters who may try to implement some barrier to en- gaging in scuba diving, snorkeling or other watersports purely based upon your age. And there may be little you can do about it because it is, after all, their company and they may only be following the advice of their attorneys, liability insur- ance providers, insurance actuaries or it could even be as ridiculous as something they read on the internet. Therefore, it is wise to know as much as you can before you plan on and pay for a diving excursion, especially in another country. It is better to go directly to the source (the dive operation or the tour/excursion operator) rather than any middleman for your information. It’s also not a bad idea, when you do talk with them, to ask why such an age restriction is in place. They may not give you a satisfying answer because, after all, it is ulti- mately their decision. One thing that I choose to do is carry a letter signed by my physician stating that, in his opinion, I am in good health and have no contraindications to diving. I get this letter each time I have my annual physical. I have not had to use it, but it may help if any operator has concerns about health. Good luck and safe diving! References: Orr, D. “The Ageless Diver.” Dive Center Business. 7/14.Orr, D. and Meurice, V. “The Mental Health Benefits of Scuba Diving.” Scuba Diving Industry Magazine. 325. Pages 6-9. Orr, D. “Cardiac Issues - Getting to the Heart of the Matter.” Scuba Diving Industry Magazine. 9/24. Pages 6-9. Orr, D. and Orr, B. 101 Tips for Recreational Scuba Divers. Wise Divers Publications (www.wisedivers.com) 2022 (available from Best Publishing www.bestpub.com). Orr, D. and Douglas, E. Scuba Diving Safety. Human
World-Class Diver Education
Underwater Kinetics. 2007. Orr, D. Open-Circuit Diving Fa- talities. Proceedings of Rebreather Forum 3. Editors Vann, R., Denoble, P., Pollock, N. 2014. pp. 103-107. Strauss, Michael B., Scuba Diving in Older Adults. Best Publishing WCHM. 2013. pp. 27-37.
AVAILABLE FOR DIVE BUSINESSES RESELLER DISCOUNTS
To Order Contact Best Publishing Company +1-561-776-6066 info@bestpub.com
email Dan Orr
Made with FlippingBook - Online Brochure Maker