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Date: Wed, 06 May 1998 17:10:38 -0400
From: katherine Irvine <kirvine@sa*.ne*>
Organization: DIR
To: Tom Mount <TOM.MOUNT@wo*.at*.ne*>
CC: jbentley@cr*.co*, cavers@ca*.co*, techdiver <techdiver@aquanaut.com>
Subject: Re: IANTD criticzing teh WKPP in Sun Sentinel
Tom, by the way, this Mc Nulty told the cops that Jane ran out of deco
gas ( not the case), so he switched her to 80/20 ( strokemix) and sent
her up to 30 feet while he stayed at 40. Bad move in print: he left his
student who was having problems. He then watched her sink to 50, and
told the cops he thought she was ok since the other instructor was there
- another bad move in print. 

Tom, if she was not ok at 40 on strokemix, then why was she ok at 50?
Think about that one. Think about why she thought she was out of gas
with all that gas in the bottle, and Tom, Jim Mims confirmed that the
bottle had plenty of gas. What was she breathing through , Tom, on her
first trimix dive ever? Was it a Dive Link, Tom? Is this a good idea , 
Tom. Can you spell P H Y S I O L O G Y ? Is CO@ a good thing, Tom, or a
bad thing to breath? Is it true that as little as 3% CO2 is what
anesthesiologists use to invoke rapid breathing in patients to apply gas
to them? Could this cause one to black out? Tom, you teach rebreather,
you tell us. 


Tom Mount wrote:
> 
> Jeff
> I'm saying that the requirements to become an instructor are more rigid than
> any other agency, again read the standards and compare them to all other
> standards and that we do have an effective and responsible QA procedure.
> Tom
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jeff Bentley <jbentley@cr*.co*>
> To: Tom Mount <TOM.MOUNT@wo*.at*.ne*>
> Cc: kirvine@sa*.ne* <kirvine@sa*.ne*>; cavers@ca*.co*
> <cavers@ca*.co*>; techdiver <techdiver@aquanaut.com>
> Date: Wednesday, May 06, 1998 2:39 PM
> Subject: Re: IANTD criticzing teh WKPP in Sun Sentinel
> 
> >Tom,
> >
> >So you are saying that even though your agency has "tough rules
> >and standards" the potential for a stroke to slip through is still
> >present and that the IANTD brand on an instructor does not necessarily
> >mean that he/she is worth their weight in salt?
> >
> >I totally agree if this is the case.
> >
> >Choosing an instructor should be based on word of mouth. Not by picking
> >up an agencies directory and seeing who is closest to you.
> >
> >regards,
> >Jeff
> >
> >
> >
> >Tom Mount wrote:
> >>
> >> To George
> >> First of all IANTD has not made any statements about WKPP in any medium.
> To
> >> my knowledge there is no Rivalry between IANTD and WKPP, why would there
> be
> >> we are a training agency WKPP is an exploration team?
> >>
> >> Derrick apparently has said something about you or WKPP that is based on
> his
> >> opinion. Derrick has a right to his opinion, and based on comments about
> him
> >> by George and others  I imagines he feels he has a good reason for
> speaking
> >> out but he  is not a spokesman for IANTD.
> >>
> >> Now as you know I do not have the liberty of discussing this accident on
> a
> >> public forum.
> >>
> >> I will explain that IANTD does have stringent standards to become an
> >> instructor at any level. For those of you wishing to check these
> standards
> >> you may do so at the IANTD web site
> >>
> >>  http//www.IANTD.com
> >>
> >> The same standards spell out the requirements for various diver levels;
> >> quite often these courses are taught as combination programs as allowed
> in
> >> the standards provided the diver has met all the qualifications.
> >> If you compare these standards from basic OW to Trimix diver you will
> >> discover they are about the most demanding and rigid standards to be
> found.
> >>
> >> I and IANTD have spent countless hours developing programs to make diving
> >> safer. These programs are always evolving and developing. Our total
> >> concentration is on dive safety and the standards we have do reflect
> that.
> >>
> >> IANTD also has a quality control program. Within this program there are
> >> mechanisms for dealing with standards violations, ethics violations and
> >> accidents. Most of these are an automatic response and in the event of
> >> diving accidents begin with a stated procedure from the IANTD QA manual
> and
> >> a comprehensive investigation.
> >> This includes obtaining all information pertinent to the accident,
> >> statements from
> >>  Students
> >>  Other divers on the dive
> >>  A QA form being sent to all former students of the instructor.
> >>  Determinations by the ME,
> >>  Reports form the recovery team,
> >>  Reports from the diving vessel
> >>  Review of the training program conducted to the date of the accident,
> >>  Statements from other sources who are aware of the diving instructor and
> >> his/her practices
> >>  Statements from others who are familiar with the capabilities of the
> >> accident victim
> >>
> >> These include people who have dived with or observed the instructor and
> >> student during training.
> >>
> >> Once all this information is compiled the data is sent to a QA board
> >> consisting of members of the IANTD international BOA. Most of these
> people
> >> will not even know a given instructor and will be totally impartial in
> >> reviewing all of the data.
> >>
> >> Based on their(BOA) determinations one of the following will take place.
> >> These actions are for the overall protection of the instructor; the
> public
> >> and IANTD while ensuring fair and just due process will evolve:
> >>
> >> First immediate step: Limited teaching status (the instructor is allowed
> to
> >> teach with another instructor while under investigation).
> >> Events following an investigation
> >>
> >> 1. If it is found that the instructor is not at fault in the accident in
> any
> >> way whatsoever then the limited teaching status will be removed and the
> >> instructor will go back on normal teaching status.
> >> Note! Most agencies simply send out a letter to the instructor informing
> >> them that the accident is under investigation and take no additional
> action
> >> at that time. Again IANTD has a more stringent program
> >>
> >> 2. If the BOA determines that the events are questionable but not
> directly
> >> controllable or preventable by the instructor The instructor will be
> placed
> >> on provisional or restricted statues and the BOA will spell out specific
> >> procedures to be adhered to in order to be reinstated to normal teaching
> >> status.
> >>
> >> 3. If the BOA finds that the instructor did not act responsibility the
> >> instructor may be suspended with the ability to request an appeal to the
> >> BOA. A suspended instructor may or may not be given a provision for
> >> reinstatement following one year of suspension again as determined by the
> >> BOA based on its finding of all the facts.
> >>
> >> 4. The BOA may find cause for expulsion from instructor and membership
> >> status within IANTD
> >>
> >> This is all I can comment on and it is the procedures IANTD follows in
> this
> >> type of event as spelled out in our QA manual.
> >>
> >> At least all of you now know the actions IANTD takes when there is an
> >> accident . These procedures were developed by numerous members of IANTD
> >> internationally and within the legal constraints recommended by our
> counsel.
> >> Again we believe they are stricter than other agencies in recreational
> and
> >> technical diving and at the same time that they will provide a more
> factual
> >> review of an accident, possible means of preventing future accidents and
> >> will be fair to all parties involved.
> >>
> >> The decision to do any of the above will be that of due process by
> impartial
> >> peers.
> >> Tom
> >>
> >
> >
> >--
> >Jeff Bentley      jbentley@cr*.co*      http://www.crl.com/~jbentley
--
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