About DAN
History of DAN : 1990-1999

1977-1989 | 1990-1999 | 2000-Present

1990
IRS grants DAN its 501(c)(3) non-profit status. The organization continues to be associated with, Duke University Medical Center. DAN rents office space for membership and non-medical services outside Duke Medical Center.

1991
DAN research reveals that only one-third of injured divers were receiving 100 percent oxygen as first aid; Oxygen First Aid Training Program begins as a response. DAN launches the program in January at DEMA. In February, International DAN - known as IDAN - meets at Duke University. By year's end, International DAN becomes a reality. IDAN members include: DAN Europe, DAN Japan, and Divers Emergency Service (D.E.S.), an affiliate organization in Australia. DAN begins Flying After Diving trials. In July, DAN moves entire staff to new headquarters at University Tower in Durham, N.C. and closes separate membership office at Duke's East Campus. A month later, DAN has trained its 1,000th Oxygen Provider.

1992
The emergency medical evacuation program - later called DAN TravelAssist (see below) - becomes DAN's newest member benefit in February. With this benefit automatically provided to all members, DAN provides free air evacuation for any medical emergency if a DAN member or an accompanying dependent is injured while at least 50 miles from home. DAN is awarded the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society's Craig Hoffman Diving Safety Award in June for its significant contributions to the health and safety of recreational divers. This marks the first time the prestigious award is presented to a group and not to an individual. The first DAN Instructor-Trainer Workshop (ITW) is conducted in September at DAN Headquarters. The first DAN MasterCard® credit card is offered to members in November. Each time the DAN MasterCard credit card is used to make a purchase, a contribution is made to DAN's diving safety research program. DAN also introduces Oxygen Training to DAN Europe in September, with subsequent international distribution of DAN oxygen equipment.

1993
DAN introduces more new programs than ever before. The insurance program expands, with more coverage for the same low price. DAN launches Accident General Insurance (AGI) as a wholly owned insurance subsidiary to provide better programs to DAN members and increased revenue to DAN. The Sponsor Program offers new and improved awards and incentives for DAN Sponsors. DAN initiates programs with an international emphasis: the Recompression Chamber Assistance Program, to aid hyperbaric chambers around the world; and a divers' database research program begins in Cozumel, to study dive profiles. This study becomes the seed for a larger study known as Project Dive Safety (later re-named Project Dive Exploration), an ambitious diving survey by DAN to catalog dive profiles in DAN's continuing efforts to improve dive safety. DAN's ongoing Flying After Diving research reaches new heights by examining the effects of the preflight surface interval and repetitive diving on decompression illness. The DAN Oxygen Program begins in Australia. The 1,000th DAN Oxygen Instructor (a DAN Europe Sponsor Instructor) is trained. DAN's new Oxygen Provider Workbook is released and the "Dive Accident Management: Guidelines for EMS" videotape is produced.

1994
The DAN Oxygen Program recognizes its 2,000th DAN Oxygen Instructor. The Flying After Diving research at the F.G. Hall Hypo/Hyperbaric Center makes steady progress in its studies of decompression illness with further applications of repetitive dives with volunteers. DAN continues the Recompression Chamber Assistance Program, sponsoring the first ever medical conference for chamber personnel in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in June, followed by a fall Diving Medicine Course at Duke University. The new Alert Diver makes its debut, with the March/April issue, with more substantive columns and features and the first-time use of color within its pages. The Sponsor Program reaches an all-time high, with the participation of more than 300 dive stores. Project Dive Safety researchers start field-testing of computer software by beginning the most comprehensive dive profile database ever undertaken. DAN Headquarters sees internal growth, with the addition of online computer capabilities within DAN and Duke University Medical Center with monitoring of and access to the Internet. The total number of assistance calls to DAN since January 1981 reaches 90,699, with 77,092 being for information and 13,607 for emergency assistance.

1995
DAN continues its growth. The new DAN Rescue Pak Oxygen Unit is introduced. A redesigned model of DAN's standard O2 unit, it offers 20-25 minutes of uninterrupted oxygen flow on demand to a diver. By April, DAN has more than 113,000 Members and more than 5,000 Sponsors. By May, all DAN membership services operate directly from DAN Headquarters in Durham. The annual IDAN summit meets in May in Zurich, Switzerland. DAN's Project Dive Safety welcomes its sibling project in Europe, known as Project Safe Dive. Also in May, DAN changes its insurance into a tiered program, offering three levels of protection to DAN members, the "Standard," "Plus" and "Master" plans. Alert Diver begins its advertising program with the May/June issue, using full-color throughout the July/August issue. In August, the DAN Tag ™, the only diving emergency ID tag available through dive retailers, makes a big splash. In 1995, DAN answers 2,120 emergency calls and 14,642 information calls - its highest call volume since 1981, when DAN began its first full year of operation. DAN's Dive Safety Center debuts on the World Wide Web in the fall, with Medical Line questions and answers from Alert Diver, DAN benefits and services information, a listing of DAN Sponsors worldwide and more. DAN Australia, later DAN SEAP, launched with seed money from DAN America.

1996
By April DAN has reached the 118,000+ mark in membership and more than 5,600 Sponsors, including nearly 600 retail Sponsors. By April 30, DAN has answered 517 emergency calls and 4,451 information calls for the year and 124,193 assistance calls since 1981. In May, DAN names its 5,000th Oxygen Instructor. The Oxygen Provider Award program is instituted this year, and the DAN Oxygen First Aid in Dive Accidents course is taught on all seven continents. At the May meeting of the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society, DAN Director of Medical Services Joel Dovenbarger wins the Craig Hoffman Diving Safety Award for significant contributions to the health and safety of recreational divers. The DAN Tag establishes a presence in the dive community with more than 9,000 diving tags. DAN's B.C.I.D. Rental Program is begun; aqua teal and electric blue are added to the DAN Tag family lineup.

1997
In June, DAN moves to its new, permanent headquarters, the Peter B. Bennett Center, with plenty of space for all programs and future expansion. DAN's new "Oxygen First Aid for Diving Injuries" workbook is released. DAN introduces the DSS-Guardian Diver First Aid Kits - in a Pelican®, hard case or in a zipped soft-pack. The Rescue Pak Plus is developed, consisting of a standard oxygen cylinder and DAN's DSS-Guardian Diver First Aid Kit. In August "The Best of Alert Diver," a 256-page book of the best articles to appear in Alert Diver's first 15 years, is published. DAN trains its 7,000th DAN Oxygen Instructor and releases new DAN "Oxygen First Aid for Diving Injuries" video. By August, more than 22,000 DAN Tags are in use, and Retail Sponsors total 725. The Charter Boat I.D. System for DAN Tags is begun, with immediate positive response in the dive industry. DAN forms a more cohesive development strategy in order to cultivate significant gifts for sustaining valuable DAN Research projects. DAN Southern Africa is launched with conversion of 4,000 Dive Evac International members to DAN Southern Africa membership.

1998
DAN launches "Partners in Dive Safety ™" Program at the 1998 DEMA Show. DAN's Diving Emergency Hotline answers 2,312 emergency calls; the non-emergency information line and website receive 14,500 non-emergency calls and requests for information. DAN creates a for-profit subsidiary called DAN Services, Inc. which will manage certain services, including insurance products and new safety programs, such as the new "Oxygen First Aid for Aquatic Emergencies" training program. DAN Services will help provide additional revenue to fund DAN's non-profit dive public safety programs and help protect DAN's 501(c)(3) non-profit status.

1999
DAN launches the Remote Oxygen (REMO2 ™) system and training program after extensive research and product development. The REMO2 extends emergency medical oxygen supply by absorbing carbon dioxide (CO2) from diver's expired air. DAN completes data collection in three studies: Research on Flying After Diving and Doppler Determination of Bubbles in Divers. DAN initiates a Study of Ascent Rates. In February, DAN reaches nearly 900 retail Sponsors; its Endowment reaches $100,000. Sponsors generate 35 to 40 percent of members and insured members. More than 35,000 DAN tags are in use. DAN hosts its 37th Diving Accident and Hyperbaric Oxygen Course providing CME credits.

1977-1989 | 1990-1999 | 2000-Present