During 2020, AIDA is planning to significantly expand the number of instructors who can teach its new Freediving Emergency Medical Responder course. The first two announced FEMR Instructor courses are planned for February – in Dahab, Egypt, and March – in Panglao, Philippines.
The AIDA Freediving Emergency Medical Responder course was released in August 2019. It was developed by the founder of “The Diver Medic” Chantelle Newman, AIDA Medical Officer Oleg Melikhov and Education Officer Brian Crossland. By the end of 2019, there are now 17 FEMR instructors from Korea, Taiwan, France, Hong Kong, and Japan after they attended the first FEMR Instructor course in Seoul, Korea which was run by Chantelle Newman and assisted by Brian and Catherine Crossland.
The 5-day course is packed with freediving medical content, a lot of which was new to the candidates by their own admission. One of the candidates was an emergency physician and even he commented that he had learned new things related to the treatment of freediving injuries. All of the instructors agreed that their approach to teaching was now going to improve and change from what they have learned during the course. Following feedback on this course, the developers have updated the materials and are continuously revising them to include more information as new research gets published.
The FEMR course differs from traditional first aid courses by covering topics such as the pathophysiology of illnesses and injuries, with an emphasis on freediving-related injuries such as barotrauma, squeezes, lung injuries, hypoxia, narcosis, decompression illness, immersion pulmonary edema, and ear injuries and treatment. After taking the theory online, participants then go through practical elements and skill tests such as taking full vital signs, including blood pressure and pulse oximetry, while also treating non-freediving related trauma injuries and medical illnesses. Students also learn how to examine the ear with the use of an otoscope, how to use oropharyngeal and nasopharyngeal airways. A practical assessment puts into practice theoretical and practical learning.
AIDA Freediving Emergency Medical Responder course is available to freedivers of any association while the FEMR Instructor course is only available to active AIDA instructors. The team is preparing course materials to teach further FEMR Instructor Trainers across the world. In the meantime, FEMR instructors are trained by Chantelle Newman and her team.
If you are interested in joining the next set of courses you can apply below:
- February 27, 2020, in Dahab, Egypt – register with Catherine Crossland via email.
- March 16, 2020, in Panglao, Philippines – apply via the registration form.
The team is looking to teach further FEMR Instructor courses, specifically in Europe and China, and welcome interest from any freediving centers who wish to host the course.
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