NULLAWARRE, Australia (15 Aug 2005) -- A NULLAWARRE diver who was the victim of a rare reaction has warned other scuba divers not to be complacent about their health. Rachael Clare, a mother of four, took part in a simulated dive in a hyperbaric chamber in Portland last Sunday. Along with dive instructor Mark Woodgate, of Shipwreck Coast Diving and Snorkelling, and two others, Ms Clare simulated a dive to 39 metres, completed a written test at the bottom and returned to normal pressure within 35 minutes. ''I surfaced from the dive feeling fine,'' Ms Clare said. ''About an hour later I began to feel slight pain in my left leg and knee, but dismissed it as just a niggle. The niggle continued for a few hours, gradually becoming more uncomfortable, to the point where it was quite painful.'' A call to Mr Woodgate confirmed Ms Clare's suspicions that she was suffering ill effects from the dive. Nullawarre Community Emergency Response Team were quickly on the scene and Ms Clare was taken to The Alfred hospital in Melbourne to be treated in a recompression chamber. ''It was just what they called an `undeserved hit','' she said. ''It was a freak occurrence.'' Mr Woodgate agreed: ''It is taught to divers in their open water course that even if you follow all the rules and obey all the guidelines and do all the sensible things, there is a chance of an undeserved hit. It happens very rarely, but it does happen,'' he said. | | Ms Clare was treated in hyperbaric chambers for a total of 14 hours over three days at The Alfred hospital and Portland's Professional Diver Services. While she has completely recovered, she urged other scuba divers to be aware of the risks involved and to seek help immediately if they feel sick. ''I was complacent. I was dismissive of the symptoms. I thought it couldn't happen to me,'' she said. ''I took the attitude that because I knew all the protocols were safe, it couldn't be the 'bends'.'' Mr Woodgate said experiencing the bends was more common up to 12 hours after a dive than straight after. ''The common perception is you come out of the water and buckle up and that's actually the rare one,'' he said. ''The common one is typified by joint pain, pins and needles (and) slurred speech up to 12 hours after.'' Ms Clare said the help from Nullawarre CERT, Shipwreck Coast Diving, Professional Diver Services and staff at The Alfred's hyperbaric medicine department had ensured she was back on her feet within days. ''I've been told to stay out of the water for four weeks,'' she said. ''But I can't wait to get back in there.'' SOURCE - Warrnambool Standard |
