The Diver Clinic, Diving & Hyperbaric Medicine Unit based in Poole, Dorset has said it will be permanently closing to patients as of 31 January 2025.
The closure follows a public consultation and review of hyperbaric medicine and oxygen provision by NHS England.
The Diver Clinic first entered service in 1992 to provide emergency recompression facilities for scuba divers in the central English Channel region. It is one of just eight Category 1 chambers located on mainland Britain, and has treated many divers over the last 33 years.
Of the four categories of hyperbaric treatment facility, ‘Cat 1’ chambers are the highest-rated, capable of providing advanced life support in addition to hyperbaric treatment for divers with life-threatening cases of decompression illness.
A statement from Stephen Munro, director of The Diver Clinic, said the decision to close the chamber was ‘made on a mutually agreeable basis with the NHS’ based on ‘the convergence of multiple commercial, contractual, and operational factors’ within the scope of the NHS service contract that meant it was no longer viable to operate the clinic’s recompression facilities.
The NHS HBOT commissioning team is liaising with The Diver Clinic to ensure an orderly closure of the service and its facilities in Poole.
‘The Diver Clinic would like to thank the dedicated, diligent and exceptionally experienced long-standing team members who have delivered the service in Poole,’ Mr Munro’s statement continued.
‘[We] would also like to thank the emergency services, maritime search & rescue and medical support organisations who have all worked closely with us to save so many lives over the last three decades.’
The Diver Clinic will continue to accept patient referrals until 31 January 2025, after which treatment enquiries will be returned to the referrer and provided with contact details of alternative NHS-approved facilities.
