Doctor's consultation via Skype Video

The Midlands Diving Chamber now offers a new service for scuba divers who suspect they may be suffering from Decompression Illness (DCI), whether they are down the road or have just got off a dive boat on the other side of the world. With the introduction of Skype Video Chat Service a diver can talk directly, and in total confidence, with one of the dive doctors from the Midlands Diving Chamber.

The Skype Video Chat Service enables the doctor to see a patient via a video line where:

• A diver can show directly where any pain might be
• Show any rashes or swellings they might have
• Get a friend to perform simple tests on the diver with suspected dci under the direction of the dive doctor
• Demonstrate any gait or balance issues they might be suffering
• Get advice on what the diver should do

The simple technology is cheap to install (please see below) and is already offered by many internet cafes around the world, making it an ideal tool for divers who are often out in remote locations where there is no access to a dive doctor.

The video consultation service offered by the Midlands Diving Chamber is free to anyone who suspects they may have decompression illness. All the patient needs to do is ring the emergency number to book a consultation with the doctor.

N.B. For all diving emergencies a diver should first contact their nearest emergency service or recompression chamber.

Downloading Skpe

Please visit www.skype.com in order to download the latest version of Skype for Windows. Please note: Skype Video is currently only available on Windows.

Recommended System Requirements for Skype

• PC running Windows 2000 or XP
• 1 GHz processor
• 512 MB RAM
• Video Card with at least 16MB of memory
• 30 MB free space on your hard drive
• Full duplex sound card (most sound cards made after 1998)
• Webcam
• Cable, DSL or equivalent broadband connection to Internet