National Board of Diving and Hyperbaric Medical Technology (NBDHMT), formally known as the National Association of Diving Technicians, is a

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

devoted to the education and certification of qualified personnel in the fields of

diving Diving most often refers to: * Diving (sport), the sport of jumping into deep water * Underwater diving, human activity underwater for recreational or occupational purposes Diving or Dive may also refer to: Sports * Dive (American football), a ...

and

hyperbaric medicine Hyperbaric medicine is medical treatment in which an ambient pressure greater than sea level atmospheric pressure is a necessary component. The treatment comprises hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT), the medical use of oxygen at an ambient pressure ...

History

The

professional divers A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

of the

United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America The United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, often simply the United Brotherhood of Carpenters (UBC), was formed in 1881 by Peter J. McGuire and Gustav Luebkert. It has become one of the largest trade unions in the United State ...

sponsored an Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society workshop in 1975 to look at the needs for

Emergency Medical Technician An emergency medical technician (EMT), also known as an ambulance technician, is a health professional that provides emergency medical services. EMTs are most commonly found working in ambulances. In English-speaking countries, paramedics are ...

s (EMT) for the treatment of diving related injuries. This workshop established a need for medically trained personnel in offshore diving operations as well as suggested training standards for EMT divers. Following this workshop, attempts were made to incorporate a "Diver Medic Training Program" into existing

paramedic A paramedic is a registered healthcare professional who works autonomously across a range of health and care settings and may specialise in clinical practice, as well as in education, leadership, and research. Not all ambulance personnel are p ...

curricula. This proved to be impossible due to the "esoteric nature of undersea medicine, and its geographically and medically remote applications. In response to this need, the National Association of Diving Technicians was formed in 1981 and introduced a

certification Certification is the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. It is the formal attestation or confirmation of certain characteristics of a ...

program for all technologists working in the field, as well as establishing an introductory training course curriculum standard for those desiring to enter the field. In 1991, the National Association of Diving Technicians set out to establish a new certification program for hyperbaric technologists and changed their name to the National Board of Diving and Hyperbaric Medical Technology. Certification through the NBDHMT is required by some of Medicare's regional intermediaries to be reimbursable for

transcutaneous oxygen measurement Transcutaneous oxygen measurement (TCOM or TcPO2) is a non-invasive method of measuring the oxygen level of the tissue below the skin. Since oxygen is carried by the blood, TCOM can be used as an indirect measure of blood flow to the tissue. Since ...

. In June 2009, the NBDHMT moved their home office from Harvey, Louisiana to

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...

Programs

Diver Medic Technician

The Diver Medic Technician (DMT) program is designed to meet the specific medical care needs of commercial, professional and scientific divers that often work in geographic isolation. DMT's are specifically trained for the various

diving hazards and precautions Divers face specific physical and health risks when they go underwater with scuba or other diving equipment, or use high pressure breathing gas. Some of these factors also affect people who work in raised pressure environments out of water, for ...

found on remote work sites. The comprehensive curriculum covers a wide range of topics from

barotrauma Barotrauma is physical damage to body tissues caused by a difference in pressure between a gas space inside, or contact with, the body and the surrounding gas or liquid. The initial damage is usually due to over-stretching the tissues in tensio ...

to treatment of decompression sickness. DMT's have been taking a larger role in traditional hyperbaric oxygenation facilities in the United States. In a survey of 176 monoplace hyperbaric chamber facilities, the mean number of full-time DMTs was 1.43 while the number of part-time DMTs was 1.83 persons.

Certified Hyperbaric Technologist

The Certified Hyperbaric Technologist (CHT) program is tailored to meet the specific safety and operation needs for biomedical devices within the department and generalized clinical knowledge to administer the clinical treatments. The curriculum covers a wide range of topics from hyperbaric chamber operations to transcutaneous oxygen monitoring.

Certified Hyperbaric Registered Nurse

The Certified Hyperbaric Registered Nurse (CHRN) program is a

subspecialty A subspecialty (US English) or subspeciality (international English) is a narrow field of professional knowledge/skills within a specialty of trade, and is most commonly used to describe the increasingly more diverse medical specialties. A subspe ...

for

registered nurse A registered nurse (RN) is a nurse who has graduated or successfully passed a nursing program from a recognized nursing school and met the requirements outlined by a country, state, province or similar government-authorized licensing body to o ...

s. Hyperbaric nursing challenges nurses "to provide safe, cost-effective, quality patient care, according to established standards." Hyperbaric nurses are sometimes referred to as baromedical nurses and many CHRNs are also members of the Baromedical Nurses Association.

Certification

Certification is granted after a candidate meets the prerequisites and passes the written exams offered each year at the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society annual scientific meeting as well as their regional meetings. Maintaining certification requires completion of Continuing Education Credits from NBDHMT approved sources like the UHMS or

Divers Alert Network Divers Alert Network (DAN) is a group of not-for-profit organizations dedicated to improving diving safety for all divers. It was founded in Durham, North Carolina, United States, in 1980 at Duke University providing 24/7 telephonic hot-line div ...

References

External links

NBDHMT web site

{{DEFAULTSORT:National Board Of Diving And Hyperbaric Medical Technology Diving medicine organizations Diving organizations Non-profit organizations based in South Carolina