Wearable tech and dive computer specialist Garmin has announced a collaboration with the Divers Alert Network (DAN) to provide scuba divers with more direct access to specialist support during emergencies.
Divers who own a Garmin inReach portable satellite communication and SOS device with an active satellite plan can now add their DAN membership number to the Emergency Notes section of their Garmin account.
If they subsequently activate the device’s SOS function, the Garmin Response team will coordinate the emergency response and share relevant information with DAN, provided the user has an active DAN membership.
Garmin Response is a professional emergency coordination centre staffed 24 hours a day. The team communicates with the user, their emergency contacts, search-and-rescue organisations and other local services, providing updates until the incident has been resolved.
The SOS function can be used by divers once they are at the surface through devices such as the inReach Mini 3 Plus carried inside Garmin’s waterproof dive case.
DAN’s emergency team can provide specialist dive-medicine advice, help determine the appropriate level of care, locate suitable medical and hyperbaric facilities and communicate with healthcare providers.
Under the collaboration, Garmin Response will continue to coordinate rescue efforts in the field, while DAN provides medical expertise during the emergency and as the diver moves into professional care.
Once an injured diver reaches a medical facility, DAN Medical and Assistance Services may continue to provide support where appropriate. DAN may also help with medical transport, evacuation and related arrangements when these are medically necessary and covered by the member’s benefits or insurance.
‘Remote diving continues to grow in increasingly challenging environments,’ said Cliff Richardson, president and chief executive officer of DAN.
‘This collaboration reflects DAN’s commitment to ensuring that our members have access to specialised support when and where they need it most. By bringing dive medicine expertise into the response process more efficiently, we can better support divers wherever their adventures take them.’
Susan Lyman, Garmin vice-president of consumer sales and marketing, said: ‘By connecting Garmin Response with DAN’s trusted dive medicine resources, we can help ensure divers have access to specialised expertise when it matters most.’
For more information on connecting inReach devices to DAN’s network of support, visit www.garmin.com
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