HOW TO CONTACT A HYPERBARIC CHAMBER

[Jay]

Information passed to me by Stuart Walker, Senior Staff Nurse, Hyperbaric Medicine Unit, Aberdeen Royal Infirmary (Hyperbaric Medicine Unit):

"Here is a brief overvew of the correct referral routes in the UK:


At sea: Contact the coastguard on Channel 16.

On land: In England, Northern Ireland and Wales call the Duty Diving Medical Officer on 07831 151523 (24 hrs).

In Scotland call 0845 408 6008 (24 hrs) - ask for the on-call hyperbaric doctor. UPDATED

If the patient is seriously unwell or deteriorating rapidly, inform the ambulance service promptly by dialling 999"

[peter k]

Tell the Ambulace "NOT" TO GIVE ENTINOX". Is that clear enough?
 It's a gas that kils pain. The problem is that the pain killer is nitrogen. Not the best thing to give a bent diver(for obvious reasons)

Peter

[malcolm smith]

Entenox-----50/50 O2/N2O.
N2O is nitrous oxide.
Used in childbirth and as a sedation agent for dental treatment, although for the dental care, a variable mix is possible, techy or what!
A friend was given this on his helicopter ride to a chamber!
Not good.
Cheers, Malcolm.

[Adrian Kelland]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (malcolm smith @ Aug. 26 2003,18:35)]Entenox-----50/50 O2/N2O.
N2O is nitrous oxide.
Used in childbirth and as a sedation agent for dental treatment, although for the dental care, a variable mix is possible, techy or what!
A friend was given this on his helicopter ride to a chamber!
Not good.
Cheers, Malcolm.

Jeez Malcolm, I thought they knew better.

Not good at all. Did he make an issue of it, to make sure it never happened again?

Adrian

[malcolm smith]

Hi Adrian, no, he was just happy to be fine after the chamber-----he and his buddy had fun getting home, N England, from Belfast in their wooly bears though!
Cheers, Malcolm.

[Mary]

trip to the chamber and new holiday all in one

[JohnD]

Originally Posted by malcolm smith

Entenox-----50/50 O2/N2O.
N2O is nitrous oxide.
Used in childbirth and as a sedation agent for dental treatment, although for the dental care, a variable mix is possible, techy or what!
A friend was given this on his helicopter ride to a chamber!
Not good.
Cheers, Malcolm.

I would have thought that a chopper crew would have known better, an ambulance crew? now that is different altogether. I had to deliver a lecture on dive injuries to the crew of the ambulance transporting me to the pot in Poole on saturday evening.
My girlfriend and folks came to get me and bring me back home last night. luckily I had time to pack a overnight bag as I was at home when I started feeling the effects.

[Phill]

NOTE very, very, BENE
The Scottish diving medical advice/medical emergency number has changed, with immediate effect, to 0845 408 6008.
The old (681818) number will only function, in tandem, for a further four weeks.

[Majo]

Part of ambulance basic training for medical gases is that enonox is contraindicated for DCI. Gas is used mainly for pain relief, its self administed (so diver can refuse) and is mainly used for moving people with broken bones. Also some times used in heart attacks. Look out for the blue bottle on a demand mask or mouth piece. All the other gas on an ambulance (that I have ever used) has been O2, very easy to spot.

The greater scary thing for me was on my bend on bank holiday monday I had to tell the A+E department how to treat me and they went and looked it up on google.

Big thanks to the London Hyperbaric chamber at whipps cross hospital.