Dubai: When a back injury threatened to end Eman Al Suwaidi’s career as a paramedic, she did not despair, and instead turned it into an opportunity to become the first certified Emirati woman paramedic rescue diver.
Al Suwaidi, a 36-year-old mother of four and a senior paramedic with the Dubai Corporation for Ambulance Services (DCAS) with 10 years of service, is today capable of swimming to a depth of 30 metres to rescue people facing an emergency at sea.
Al Suwaidi is also a member of the Professional Association of Diving Instructors.
“I’m was very attached to my work as a paramedic and did my utmost to save people’s lives,” Al Suwaidi told Gulf News. “In 2009, I found out that I have a problem with a lower disk in my back, but I chose to ignore it because I was passionate about what I was doing and didn’t want anything to stop me.
“At one point, my back situation was getting serious and I had to go through treatment. It was water-therapy treatment that made me realise I want to learn rescue diving no matter what it takes.”
Al Suwaidi trained at Al Boom Diving Club in Dubai for a year until she became eligible for sea rescue. She went on to earn an internationally certified rescue diver certificate.
“I completed theoretical and practical training in 2017, and upon finishing the advanced course I had to perform 30 dives, which was probably the most difficult part. Many people had questioned my capabilities because of my weight, but I believe nothing can be an obstacle when you want to save lives,” Al Suwaidi said.
A graduate in paramedic studies, Al Suwaidi has saved hundreds of people in Dubai since she began working in 2008. When asked to recall one land rescue case she could never forget, she said: “I will never forget the day we went to rescue a seven-year-old boy and his father after a major car accident that left the boy’s hand severed. The boy had been flung out of the car window with the impact. It was a very delicate case. We had to cover his wounds and retrieve his severed hand so that it could be reattached at the hospital.”
The boy was rushed to Rashid Hospital where he recovered after surgery, she added.
Al Suwaidi is now ready to take the plunge into the world of maritime rescue.
“I’m ready and more than prepared. Hopefully, nothing will stop me. I also encourage other paramedics to get the training and become certified rescue divers,” he said.
