Funding for the USC Hyperbaric Chamber on Catalina that is an integral part of scuba diving safety in the region got a boost from thisyear’s major benefit events.
Despite lower attendance and a still-recovering economy, the annual Chamber Day/Eve event to raise funds for the USC Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber at the Isthmus managed to come up with a very healthy total yesterday of $125,393.
It is the second-highest amount ever raised by the event.
Funding for the USC Hyperbaric Chamber on Catalina that is an integral part of scuba diving safety in the region got a boost from thisyear’s major benefit events.
Despite lower attendance and a still-recovering economy, the annual Chamber Day/Eve event to raise funds for the USC Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber at the Isthmus managed to come up with a very healthy total yesterday of $125,393.
It is the second-highest amount ever raised by the event.
Event chair Ken Kurtis said that people’s generosity is what came through. “One of our major donors came in last night and told me that he thought he had pledged $12,000 but he wrote the check for $15,000 so we could do whatever was needed with the extra money.” In fact, direct donations to the event through what’s known as the Chamber Challenge seemed to set a record this year as those alone were in excess of $71,000.
Another factor was the BIBS Challenge. A BIBS mask is a special oxygen-delivery mask used during chamber treatments. They cost $1,525 each and the event hoped to be able to buy 8.
A “challenge” was issued for people to fund masks (a sign will be erected at the Chamber of those who provided funding) and in the end, 12 masks were funded.
Chamber Director Karl Huggins says this extra funding gives him some breathing room.
“Aside from enabling us to continue to provide an excellent level of patient care, we can now look to upgrade the masks even further, adding things like communication mics to them which enables us to talk directly to patients during a treatment without having to interrupt the flow of oxygen,” he said,
While scuba diving accident are relatively rare (the chamber averages two or three treatments a month), the chamber must stand at the ready 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, and that’s where the expense comes in. “The overall weekly expenses don’t really change that much between weeks when there are treatments and weeks when there aren’t,” Kurtis said. “The chamber still does training runs, takes care of staff, uses supplies, and all the other things associated with being at-the-ready.”
The USC Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber is located on the campus of the USC Wrigley Marine Science Center at Big Fisherman Cove at the West End of Catalina Island. It is an emergency medical facility for the treatment of scuba diving accidents. Without proper treatment, major problems from diving accidents, most commonly Decompression Sickness (the “Bends”) and Air Embolism, can lead to permanent disabling injuries and in some instances be fatal.
In the Southern California area around Catalina Island, the combination of effective on-site management of a diving accident along with the rapid response by Los Angeles County Baywatch Lifeguards, or the U.S. Coast Guard, and swift, effective treatment at the Chamber can save a diver’s life. The USC Catalina Hyperbaric Chamber is 24 feet long, 9-1/2 feet in diameter and has two locks. The size of the Chamber allows the possibility of treating multiple patients simultaneously (to date, the maximum number of patients treated simultaneously is four) and allows room to perform CPR and advanced life support for patients.
