Posted by msblucow on September 08, 2001 at 07:07:39:
In Reply to: Seeking opinions on the best certification course.... posted by Tony Lewis on September 08, 2001 at 04:19:48:
If you can find a good YMCA advanced or rescue course, that might be your best bet considering your prior experience. A PADI AOW is literally just a guided tour with an instructor who will take you on a night dive, a deep dive (to about 100', then test you with some math problems at that depth to demonstrate the effects of narcosis), a dive using navigation and 2 additional dives with a skill of your choice (i.e. 'naturalist', 'photography', etc.) If you've been diving for a while, it's really only useful as a gateway to more advanced courses like rescue or divemaster.
The rescue course however can be quite good (depending on the instructor) and will include medic/first aid (but not DAN O2). A good instructor will emphasise lots of skills practice and drills to get you used to the idea of handling a panicked or unconscious diver in the water.
Hope that helps.