Scuba diving medical requirements and fitness

The medical questionnaire

Before any in-water training, every student completes a diver medical questionnaire. The major agencies use a common form developed by the international recreational scuba training council together with diving medicine specialists. It asks yes-or-no questions about your health history and current conditions.

• If you answer no to every question, you sign the form and can start training.
• If you answer yes to any question, you need a physician to review the form and sign that you are fit to dive before you get in the water. This is not a refusal; many people with a yes answer are cleared.

Answer honestly. The form exists to protect you, and a condition that is harmless on land can become dangerous under pressure. Bring the signed physician's form with you on day one; without it, the school cannot let you train.

Conditions that need a doctor's review

The questionnaire covers many areas. Some of the most common reasons a doctor's review is needed include:

• Lung conditions, including asthma, a history of collapsed lung, or recent chest surgery
• Heart and circulation, including heart disease, high blood pressure treated with medication, or a history of stroke
• Seizures, fainting or blackouts
• Diabetes, especially if treated with insulin
• Ear and sinus problems, including past ear surgery or difficulty equalizing on flights
• Recent surgery or injury
• Pregnancy, or trying to become pregnant
• Regular medication other than birth control or anti-malarial drugs
• Mental health conditions or treatment that could affect judgment underwater

This is not the full list, and having one of these conditions does not automatically rule you out. The doctor's job is to weigh your specific situation.

The swim and float test

During beginner training you show basic water comfort. Requirements differ slightly by agency, but for an Open Water course they are usually:

• A continuous swim of about 200 metres or yards with no time limit and any stroke, or about 300 metres or yards with mask, fins and snorkel
• About ten minutes of floating or treading water, using any method

You do not need to be fast or stylish. If you cannot yet swim that distance comfortably, a few sessions at a local pool before your course will make the whole experience more enjoyable.

General fitness for diving

Recreational diving is usually relaxed, but it can turn physical quickly: a surface swim against a current, climbing a boat ladder in full gear, or helping a buddy. You should be able to carry your own equipment short distances and swim steadily for several minutes without exhaustion. Regular moderate exercise, such as walking, cycling or swimming, is good preparation.

The Rescue Diver course and professional training are more demanding still, and professional training requires a physician's statement whatever your answers.

Fit to dive today?

Being medically cleared is not the same as being fit to dive on a given day. Do not dive if you have:

• A cold, congestion or a sinus infection, which make equalizing difficult and can damage your ears. Our post on how to equalize your ears explains why.
• A hangover, dehydration or very little sleep
• Seasickness that has left you exhausted
• Any new symptom you have not discussed with a doctor

Flying after diving

Flying soon after diving raises the risk of decompression sickness. Widely used guidelines from diving medicine organizations recommend waiting at least 12 hours after a single no-decompression dive, and at least 18 hours after multiple dives in a day or several days of diving. Plan your course so the last dive is well before your flight home. More habits like this are in our guide to scuba skills and safety.