Life Beyond the Beaker

Kate Stanton  (dive officer), Ben Robinson  (marine biologist) and I headed down for a week of diving in the vast waters of Plymouth. Together we are the foundation of the wintering dive team...We are a team of the few people conducting science at Rothera during the Winter. Due to this we need to make sure that we all work together and that our diving is tiptop  before heading down south. We spent the week at the amazing new Plymouth marine station with Plymouth University. Matt Brown ( ex BAS dive officer and station commander) and the rest of the awesome dive instructors at UOP guided us through the training. Thanks to Bex, Charlie, Cath, Mike, Pete and Pete for your help! The aim of the week was to test our new drysuits  (courtesy of BAS) and testing out the BAS dive kit, where the bail out block (reserve tank handle) is on the mask instead of the usual waist strap; additionally diving with each other and building up trust. Thursday was spent up at DDRC where w...

A few of us wintering  folk were picked to do an advanced first aid course, the reason for this is the fact that we only have one doctor (Tom) during the winter and he can't do everything...especially if ends up ill! We fitted what felt like a 3rd year medical course into 3 days! The aim was to be train us up to be medical assistants but to also do some of the minor even to major things on our own. Would you trust this man? Our lovely doc for the next 18 months. #lad We spent our time split between DDRC and observing patients in the emergency department in Derriford hospital. In an intense few days we learnt how to provide basic life support through developing our ABCDE care but more about how to stabilise the patient, we learnt how to x ray, plaster each other, put a cannula in to attach an IV drip, administer adrenaline and antibiotics and a few more skills that hopefully we won't need. Our skills were tested on a similuator, it was the scariest version of an...

I had a week in the head office of BAS in Cambridge last week where I was given my own desk...that was pretty exciting until it hit me that even if the sun is shining you need to sit at your desk! I worked to prepare for the projects that I need to complete when I arrive in December but also came up with with a winter scientific project which should be exciting when I start to collect some samples! It is however, weird to think that my next desk will be looking over the Rothera runway (that will definitely distract me) and the amazing ice shelf (even more distraction)....not to mention the penguins! I also found the only hill in cambridge ( I can't cope with how flat it is) and went punting with Ben and Benedict...A must when one is in Cambridge apparently. Great fun! Now onto working with BASMU in the A&E department of Derriford hospital in Plymouth !