SAFETY Checklists and a Consistent Pre-Dive Ritual – by Dan Orr, President, Dan Orr Consulting
Preparation for any dive actually be- gins before you leave home. Besides making sure that your skills, recent ex- periences, and equipment are equal to the demands of the upcoming dive, you need to make sure that you bring every-
and fins where they would go, followed by the weight belt, BCD, and any other accessory equipment for the dive. The dive buddies would then take a few minutes looking over each other’s equipment to make sure nothing was missing. You could also do the same with a checklist. In 2012, Divers Alert Network (DAN), the Professional As- sociation of Diving Instructors (PADI), and the American Academy of Underwater Sciences (AAUS) joined forces to hold Rebreather Forum 3.0. Part of the outcome of the Re-
thing that you will need for the dive. When I was actively teaching, I spent time talking about the value of a Save-A- Dive Kit, making sure that you have everything you need, in-
cluding some spare parts in case of part failure. I asked the class, “If you spent thousands of dollars on the dive trip of a lifetime and traveled thousands of miles to get there, how much
breather Forum 3.0 was a number of consensus posi- tions. One involved the im- portance of checklists, primarily for the use of re- breathers, but the implica- tions are far ranging: “The
would you pay to replace a broken fin strap if you didn’t have one? How much would you pay if you traveled to one of the best dive spots in the world only to find out you forgot your prescription mask?” That is kind of a sobering thought. I am sure something like that has happened to many divers, possi- bly even you. The best way to keep from forgetting anything is to have a detailed checklist. Actually, divers may have many checklists. I have one to make sure I bring everything I will need for the upcoming dive. To make that packing checklist, I refer to notes from previous dive trips, visualize the dives I’m going to make, and take note of things I will need, plus any back up equipment in case of equipment failure. On a trip to Antarctica in 2024, we were told to leave our equipment in the Zodiacs, as it would be hauled aboard the research vessel where we could retrieve it more easily. Well, when I went to retrieve my gear, a large hook used to raise the Zodiacs had gone right through the middle of my prescription mask. Luckily, I had brought a backup prescription mask, or that would have been the end of any in-water activities for me. A detailed packing checklist will not only make sure you bring everything you need but will also help make sure that you bring everything back with you. Once at the dive site, you may also want to consider another checklist to make sure that you have everything you will need while making the dive. When I was actively teaching, we would make sure that we had everything we needed for the dive by laying out our equipment in the form of a diver on a ground sheet. The exposure suit, the hood, the boots, and the gloves were laid down first, followed by the mask, snorkel,
Forum acknowledged the overwhelming evidence demon- strating the efficacy of checklists in preventing errors.” Checklists are important but only go so far. I suggest com- bining a checklist with what I call a consistent pre-dive ritual. The consistent pre-dive ritual begins before you and your div- ing companion get into the water. As I have mentioned many times in previous articles and my diving safety webinars, the recent practice of critical emergency skills such as the ex- change of breathing gas in an emergency is critical. Skill prac- tice comes in different forms, including “static rehearsal,” that involves review of training manuals, checklists, photographs, and videos only. Static rehearsal can refresh your memory but cannot reinforce the all-important muscle memory necessary to be effective if the need arises. Dynamic rehearsal, on the other hand, involves actual practice using the diving equip- ment divers would be using during a dive. Dynamic rehearsal can be either in a safe, confined water setting, on the surface, or even standing on the boat deck or shore, where divers go through the mechanics of skills such as the exchange of breathing gas. Dynamic rehearsal appears most effective for the retention of manual or mechanical skills. Therefore, it could be in the best interest of diving safety to adopt a “dy- namic rehearsal” practice regimen. This pre-dive practice reg- imen may include reviewing the mechanics of critical skills such as providing breathing gas to a companion in an out- of-breathing-gas emergency, the jettison of weights, and even a review of hand signals prior to initiating each dive. This is something that I go through before my diving com- panion and I actually get in the water. I call it my “Safety Cross.” If you see me crossing myself before a dive, I’m not PAGE SEVEN | SCUBA DIVING INDUSTRY
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