Hyperbaric Chamber Training Courses Available

By Janine Hughes


Recompression chambers were associated with diving operations until fairly recently. It was only in the early 1960s that research showed the benefits to certain patients of breathing in pure oxygen at pressures greater than normal atmospheric pressure. It was found that this treatment helped new blood vessels to grow and body tissue and organs received more oxygen, thus promoting the healing process. Today a number of hyperbaric chamber training courses exist for health care professionals who want to be involved with this type of treatment.

There are basically two main types of chambers, one which is designed for a single patient whilst the other can accommodate several patients at a time. There is enough space for patients to be comfortable and delivery of the oxygen is individualized. The team can enter and exit the chamber without compromising treatment due to separate compartments compressing and decompressing independently.

Many different problems have been found to improve with this type of treatment. Serious infections, bubbles of air in blood vessels, wounds that will not heal, carbon monoxide poisoning and thermal burns are just some of the problems that can be treated. Treatment protocols establish the optimum amount of time and dosage required for a specific problem.

Various courses are available for health care professionals who want learn more about this therapy. Some are basic and others more advanced. When choosing a course, the most important factor to consider is accreditation. It is important to establish the credentials of those who were involved in formulating the course. Other factors to bear in mind are cost, length and the method of teaching used.

Online courses are available and they can provide a solution for those who cannot physically attend lectures. Online courses today are very advanced, offering the latest learning materials and using many tools to enhance learning. They also offer an interactive learning environment with forums, discussion groups and instructors available to help.

Topics covered in the most basic courses will be those such as the workings of chambers, oxygen toxicity as well as contraindications and side effects. Some time should be spent focused on patient care and treatment for specific conditions. Most courses are well structured with a good balance between theory and the practical application. Assessment is often continuous rather than consisting of one exam.

The length of such courses varies according to the amount of content covered and the experience level of the students. For example, some are specifically designed for those with prior knowledge. Courses may be specifically geared towards physicians, technologists, nurses, respiratory therapists and allied health care professionals. Most of these courses offer some kind of certification once a course is completed.

A well trained multi-disciplinary team is required by any hospitals with chambers as well as medical centers. Treatment is often used together with surgical and medical treatment and is often found to be helpful when other treatments are not so successful. Doing such a course opens up this relatively new arena of medicine and this work can be very fulfilling.




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