PSDA Safety Inspector Exam flashcards

33 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Diving Safety Manual

The written controlling document of a diving program stating scope, responsibilities, procedures, equipment standards, training requirements, and emergency procedures, subject to version control and periodic review.

Diving Safety Officer Authority

The named individual empowered by the program to approve dive plans, suspend diving operations, and own safety records; the manual must identify this role and its limits explicitly.

Four Conditions for Dive Authorization

A dive may proceed only when documented qualified personnel, a written plan, inspected in-date equipment, and a briefed emergency action plan are all confirmed before entry.

Documented Variance Rule

Any departure from the written manual must be recorded with justification, approving authority, and compensating controls, so the deviation remains auditable rather than becoming informal practice.

Assumed Duty Doctrine

A published safety manual or policy creates a duty the organization must follow; failing to meet its own written standard can be a breach even if that standard exceeded legal minimums.

Negligence Elements

To establish negligence an investigator must show a duty owed, a breach of that duty, actual and proximate causation, and resulting damages, each supported by evidence.

Consensus Standard Adoption

A consensus standard becomes enforceable only when adopted by regulation, contract, or program policy; until adopted it represents recommended practice rather than legal obligation.

Scientific Diving Exemption

Certain regulatory frameworks exempt scientific diving from commercial diving rules only when specific conditions on purpose, supervision, training, and program structure are all satisfied.

Dive Supervisor Stop-Work Authority

The supervisor is the single decision authority for a dive and may halt it at any time; divers cannot self-authorize changes to depth, gas, or plan.

Standby Diver Duties

The standby diver is dressed, equipped, and positioned for immediate in-water rescue, remains at the entry point, and performs no unrelated tasks during the dive.

Tender Responsibilities

The tender manages the diver's line, maintains communications, records time and depth, and initiates the emergency action plan when communication is lost or the schedule is exceeded.

Missed Check-In Escalation

The plan defines a check-in interval and grace period; a missed check-in triggers the emergency action plan automatically rather than waiting for further attempts.

Supervisor Authorization Credential

A written appointment distinct from diver certification, granted after documented experience and formal evaluation, confirming the person may lead and direct diving operations.

Diving Medical Clearance

A fitness determination issued by a provider knowledgeable in diving physiology that states the person may dive and lists any restrictions; general fitness notes are not acceptable.

Dive Currency Requirement

A written rule specifying the minimum logged dives or recency dive needed within a period before a diver may resume unsupervised diving after inactivity.

Credential Expiry Register

A single tracked list of every qualification with its expiry date and alert threshold, so no diver deploys with a lapsed certification, medical, or rescue training.

Gas Reserve Calculation

Required volume equals surface consumption rate times ambient pressure times time, plus a reserve; penetration work commonly applies thirds for outbound, inbound, and emergency gas.

Pre-Agreed Abort Criteria

Numeric, briefed thresholds such as gas below reserve, visibility below a set limit, or lost communication that require terminating the dive without deliberation under stress.

Hierarchy of Controls

Risk controls ranked from elimination and substitution through engineering and administrative measures to protective equipment, with residual risk recorded and formally accepted.

Post-Dive Debrief Record

A documented comparison of actual versus planned depth, time, gas, and events, capturing anomalies and lessons that feed back into planning and equipment decisions.

Cylinder Visual and Hydro Test

Cylinders require visual inspection on a defined interval, commonly annual, and hydrostatic testing on the interval set for the cylinder type, with legible current markings.

Out-of-Service Tagging

Defective equipment must be physically segregated and tagged so it cannot be issued, and returned to service only after documented repair and functional testing.

Equipment Traceability Rule

Each item carries a unique identifier linking it to its service history; equipment lacking traceable maintenance records is treated as unserviceable until verified.

Pre-Dive Equipment Checklist

A documented user-level check covering gas pressure and mix, valve and regulator function, buoyancy control, weights and releases, gauges, cutting tool, and lights.

Breathing Air Purity Certificate

A record showing sampled breathing air meets the adopted standard for oxygen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, oil mist, water vapor, and volatiles, naming the standard applied.

Carbon Monoxide Hazard Control

CO is the critical acute compressor hazard, sourced from exhaust entrainment or overheated oil; controls include intake placement, monitoring with alarms, and routine sampling.

Compressor Intake Placement

The intake must sit upwind of exhausts, engine vents, and traffic, and above the local dust layer, to prevent contamination of the breathing air supply.

Cylinder Fill Log

A record linking cylinder identifier, gas mix, final pressure, date, and filling operator, supporting label accuracy and traceability of every gas supply.

Decompression Illness First Response

Remove from exposure, give 100 percent oxygen, keep the casualty horizontal, monitor airway, and evacuate promptly to a chamber without delaying transport for on-site treatment.

Site-Specific Emergency Plan

An emergency action plan naming the nearest chamber and contacts, local EMS and maritime rescue, evacuation route and times, oxygen location, and the notification sequence.

Emergency Drill After-Action Review

A written evaluation completed after each exercise that records performance against the plan, identifies gaps, and assigns corrective actions with owners and due dates.

Root Cause Versus Immediate Cause

The immediate cause is the unsafe act or condition; the root cause is the management-system failure in policy, training, supervision, or design that allowed it.

Audit Sampling Rule

Select records across time and personnel rather than the best recent examples, because a random sample of logs and equipment files reveals systemic rather than isolated gaps.