Rescue Diver is a scuba diving

Scuba diving

Scuba diving is a form of underwater diving in which a diver uses a scuba set to breathe underwater....

 certification level provided by several diver training agencies, such as PADI

Professional Association of Diving Instructors

The Professional Association of Diving Instructors is the world's largest recreational diving membership and diver training organization founded in 1966 by John Cronin and Ralph Erickson...

, SSI

Scuba Schools International

Scuba Schools International or SSI is an organization that teaches the skills involved in scuba diving and supports Dive Businesses and Dive Resorts.SSI has well over 2,500 authorized dealers and 35 Regional Centers and Area Offices all over the World....

, SDI

SCUBA Diving International

Scuba Diving International is a SCUBA training and certification agency. It is the recreational arm of Technical Diving International, the world’s largest technical diver training organization...

, and NAUI

National Association of Underwater Instructors

The National Association of Underwater Instructors is a non-profit 501 association of SCUBA instructors. It was officially CE and ISO certified in May 2007 in all three diver levels and both instructor levels.-History:...

, which emphasises emergency response and diver rescue

Diver rescue

thumb|right|Beaching a casualty while providing artificial respirationDiver rescue, following an accident, is the process of avoiding or limiting further exposure to diving hazards and bringing a SCUBA diver to safety...

.

The certification level is loosely equivalent the CMAS ** Diver qualification and the BSAC Rescue Specialist,http://www.bsac.com/comediving/rescue.html although the European courses tend to be longer and more intensive than their U.S. counterparts.

Most organizations have a minimum age requirement of 15 to undertake the Rescue Diver course, although PADI does permit certification of "Junior" Rescue Divers.

Background

The Rescue Diver course is the third level qualification in the American international system, following the Advanced Open Water Diver

Advanced Open Water Diver

Advanced Open Water Diver is a scuba diving certification level provided by several diver training agencies, such as Professional Association of Diving Instructors , Scuba Schools International and Underwater Explorers' Federation...

 qualification (AOWD). Historically the course was treated as a separate "speciality" rather than a mainstream certification in itself (and arguably it still is in many organization's certification structure), but most advanced training is contingent upon having previously completed the Rescue Diver certification, and thus it effectively becomes a tier in the training.

The European International dive education system CMAS recognises only three main levels of dive education indicated by a one star, two star, or three star system. One star indicates an ability to dive, two star indicates additional skill of rescuing divers, and three star indicates the additional skill in leading a group of divers.

Topics

The course usually covers most of the following topics:

• Self-rescue and diver stress
• Emergency management and equipment
• Panicked diver response
• In-water rescue breathing protocols
• Egress (exits)
• Dive accident scenarios

In many training agencies, these dives represent introductory knowledge and skills that may be further refined in a speciality course.

Sources

• PADI
  Professional Association of Diving Instructors
  The Professional Association of Diving Instructors is the world's largest recreational diving membership and diver training organization founded in 1966 by John Cronin and Ralph Erickson...
  
  Rescue Diver Manual, ASIN:B0000DYV1X