DDRC Professional Services run a variety of training courses for the diving, maritime & offshore industry. These courses often involve practical sessions of scenarios using ‘live’ casualties. They might include mock up evacuation of a patient from a ship or platform when we use our plant room and sick bay to simulate the confined spaces to operate in. It might also be a crash victim, a trauma on board a vessel or a casualty in the wind farm industry.
These scenarios are vital in putting into practice what is learnt on each of the courses and are hugely popular with our students.
Occasionally students might be working in very confined or remote conditions and on this occasion a Sked® stretcher might play an important role in getting the patient to safety and to further medical treatment.
the Sked®stretcher
According to The Sked® manual “the stretcher is an entirely different concept in stretcher design. Therefore, potential rescuers should practice and familiarize themselves with the Sked® prior to using it on an actual rescue.”
The opportunity for practice is offered to our students and even our own trainers recently had a refresher session on the stretcher. Trainer Ron McBride offered to be the ‘casualty’ in this session and said: “The Sked® stretcher is a vital piece of kit when space is limited and to quickly evacuate a person. I felt secure in the stretcher and it appeared to be a quick assembly which is so important.”
The Sked® is especially demonstrated for students attending courses such as IMCA Diver Medic Technician and HSE Off Shore Medic .