The Importance of the Rescue Workshop During the PADI IDC Gili Islands

The Importance of the Rescue Workshop During the PADI IDC: Building Confident Instructors at Oceans 5 Gili Air

The journey to becoming a PADI Instructor is one of the most significant milestones in a diver’s career. The PADI Instructor Development Course (IDC) is designed to transform experienced divers into confident, capable, and knowledgeable dive professionals who can teach and inspire the next generation of divers. Among the many critical components of the PADI IDC, the rescue workshop stands out as a vital element that ensures instructor candidates are not only competent in their diving skills but also fully prepared to handle emergencies and teach others to do the same.

At Oceans 5 Gili Air, we recognize the pivotal role that rescue skills play in the development of a proficient dive instructor. While the PADI IDC curriculum mandates certain rescue skills for all IDC candidates, we believe that a deeper and more comprehensive approach is necessary to truly prepare our candidates for the challenges they may face as instructors. That’s why we take the rescue workshop a step further, making it an integral part of our PADI IDC Gili Islands program.

The Gap in Rescue Skill Proficiency

One of the key reasons we emphasize the rescue workshop at Oceans 5 Gili Air is the realization that many IDC candidates were certified as PADI Rescue Divers a long time ago. The rescue diver course is a transformative experience, instilling critical skills and knowledge about handling dive-related emergencies. However, for many candidates, the rescue diver certification may have been achieved years earlier, with little opportunity to practice or refine those skills since.

During the PADI Divemaster course, candidates typically revisit only one rescue skill—Rescue Exercise 7: The Unconscious Diver at the Surface. While this exercise is essential, it represents just a small portion of the comprehensive rescue skills set taught during the Rescue Diver course. Furthermore, due to the nature of dive shop operations, where open water certifications are far more common than rescue certifications, many divemaster candidates do not have the opportunity to assist in a Rescue Diver course. This lack of exposure and practice means that by the time they reach the IDC, some candidates may be unfamiliar with the full range of rescue skills or may have forgotten important aspects of those skills.

Elevating Rescue Skills to Instructor Level

Understanding this gap, we at Oceans 5 Gili Air are committed to bringing the rescue skills of our IDC candidates up to the instructor level. We dedicate a full day during our IDC program to an intensive rescue workshop, ensuring that every candidate has the opportunity to revisit, practice, and master these essential skills.

The workshop begins with a thorough review of all the rescue exercises, focusing on the correct sequence of actions, proper techniques, and effective communication during emergencies. Candidates practice these skills repeatedly in a controlled pool environment, allowing them to build muscle memory and confidence. Our experienced Course Directors and Staff Instructors provide detailed feedback and guidance, helping each candidate refine their techniques to the level required for real-world application.

Preparing Candidates for Real-Life Teaching

Once the candidates have demonstrated proficiency in the rescue skills, we take the training a step further by placing them in the role of the instructor. Each candidate must then teach and demonstrate the rescue skills as they would to a group of students in a real Rescue Diver course. This aspect of the workshop is crucial, as it not only reinforces the candidates’ understanding of the skills but also hones their ability to teach these complex and potentially life-saving techniques to others.

This dual focus on both skill mastery and teaching ability ensures that our IDC candidates leave Oceans 5 Gili Air not only as confident instructors but as professionals who are fully prepared to teach the PADI Rescue Diver course. They possess the knowledge, skills, and confidence to handle emergencies in real-life scenarios and to pass on this critical training to their students.

Building Confident Instructors at Oceans 5 Gili Air

As the only PADI Career Development Centre on Gili Air, Oceans 5 is proud of the high quality of teaching we offer in our IDC program. We believe that our emphasis on comprehensive rescue training is one of the key factors that set our program apart. By dedicating time and resources to ensuring our candidates are proficient in rescue skills and prepared to teach them, we are building a new generation of dive instructors who are not only confident in their abilities but also capable of instilling that confidence in their students.

In 2025, Oceans 5 Gili Air will conduct ten PADI IDCs, each designed to transform passionate divers into skilled and knowledgeable instructors. Our IDC program goes beyond meeting the minimum requirements, focusing on realistic teaching techniques, environmental awareness, and, of course, the crucial rescue workshop. Through this comprehensive approach, we ensure that our graduates are not only ready to pass the PADI Instructor Examination but are also equipped to excel in their careers as dive professionals.

At Oceans 5 Gili Air, we don’t just build instructors—we build confident, capable leaders in the diving community.