Education

DAN’s Oxygen Provider Course, a cornerstone of dive safety

Through its educational outreach in the last years, DAN Training has developed and managed programs critical to dive safety and the management of diving injuries. We have trained over 100,000 people that now are better prepared to manage a dive emergency as DAN Oxygen Provider, On-Site Neurological Assessment, BLS or AED providers.

DAN’s mission has always been about helping divers in need and promoting dive safety. When the benefits of oxygen as a first aid treatment became clear, developing a means of making that accessible to divers was a natural path for DAN to take.

All of these efforts made clear the necessity of an emergency oxygen training programme for the diving public. Oxygen equipment has been transformed into an important safety tool that can be easily used by people with no medical training. DAN spearheaded the effort in 1993 with the creation of a training department to develop and begin teaching such a programme. This year, DAN’s Oxygen First Aid programme celebrates two decades of improving dive safety. 

The first DAN Oxygen First Aid course was a resounding success. It now is internationally accepted that Oxygen is considered the number one first aid measure for dive accidents and an oxygen unit is considered a necessity for every professional or organisation operating in the dive industry.

Today, as DAN celebrates its 30th anniversary, we reaffirm our unwavering commitment to providing medical emergency assistance to divers in need and promoting dive safety through research, education, products and services. 

For more than twenty years now, DAN has emphasized the benefits of providing oxygen to injured scuba divers.

The goal in the DAN Training department is to have divers at every dive site trained and prepared to use oxygen to assist an injured diver. Everything we do supports that goal. 

Every diver should know how to administer emergency oxygen. Emergency oxygen is the first line treatment for both decompression sickness (DCS) and arterial gas embolism (AGE). It’s so important that dive operators and professionals consider a working oxygen unit as standard safety gear. It is also important that every diver should know how to administer emergency oxygen.

I’m happy to be a part of DAN and proud of what DAN Training has achieved. This programme has grown to be such a cornerstone of dive safety and to know that countless divers have been helped because of it. DAN staff and DAN Instructors worldwide have really changed a lot. Diving safety has improved without any doubt.

Where are we today? 

Today, oxygen is nearly ubiquitous among recreational dive businesses. It’s a pretty safe bet that any dive boat crew is trained in its use. Legions of recreational divers are certified oxygen providers and consider it a critical piece of their own gear. There was a time, though, when oxygen and capable administrators were not so common.

Good divers are always continuing their diving education, and DAN Training Programs are a key to that education. Not only do they increase a diver’s ability and confidence to assist in an emergency, but they provide skills that extend far beyond scuba.   

It’s amazing to think that when the DAN Oxygen programme started, first aid oxygen was not a universally accepted concept to divers.

Of course, the Oxygen programme was only the first of many DAN Education offerings. Since its launch, many other training programmes have been added to the line-up, creating the most comprehensive first aid and emergency assistance training available to divers. 

If you are not trained yet, contact a DAN Instructor now and ask him about training possibilities.

For scuba instructors and dive enthusiasts, DAN offers the world’s most popular oxygen first aid program, launched in 1991. This program is suitable for people of all levels, from novice to instructor. The DAN Oxygen Provider Book has been revised recently (in several languages). The new layout makes sure that the book becomes a valuable tool during skills training.

Some of the features of following a DAN Oxygen Provider course:

• The Instructor will use special course slides during the academic session
• Every student will receive a student kit, including a student book
• The course can be offered with several additional modules, making your training more complete
• Skills training will be done using a constant flow and demand system
• Every student receives an international recognised DAN Oxygen Provider card and wall certificate
• You will be trained with the original Oxygen Provider course
• Internationally recognised and most respected First Aid Certification in the diving industry
• Special offers (discounts) on selected DAN products.

And also access to a personalised MyDAN area on the DAN website, where the provider can: 

• See and update his/her personal info
• See his/her personal DAN Training certification details
• Access the latest version of the DAN Provider workbook(s) for the course(s) he/she is an active Provider for. This is especially helpful when new BLS guidelines get published
• Download flow charts in relation to the courses he/she is certified for (active)
• Print a copy of the wall certificates for the courses he/she is an active Provider for
• Check when his/her C-card was requested and when and where the card was send.

You can find a list of DAN Instructors and Instructor Trainers on the DAN website, www.daneurope.org 
If you have difficulties locating an Instructor, please contact DAN Europe Training: [email protected]

Standard “Pin Index” DAN Oxygen Unit (with empty cylinder). This standard DAN Oxygen unit is specially developed to treat injured divers and includes a 2,5 liter Pin Index Oxygen cylinder.