SSI React Right — Emergency First Response for Divers
SSI React Right is the diving industry's structured first aid certification. It covers CPR, primary and secondary patient assessment, first aid for common injuries, AED (automated external defibrillator) use, and emergency oxygen administration, and it's built to finish in one day.
For divers, React Right is required for the SSI DiveMaster professional certification. It's useful well outside diving too. These are the same life-saving skills you'd use in any emergency, anywhere.
React Right is a prerequisite for SSI Stress & Rescue. If DiveMaster is your eventual goal, doing React Right and Stress & Rescue on the same trip saves time. We can set up a combined schedule.
SSI React Right — what you'll learn
Primary SurveyScene safety assessment, checking responsiveness, opening the airway, checking for breathing and pulse — the foundation of emergency response.
CPR — Cardiopulmonary ResuscitationCorrect hand position and compression depth, compression-to-breath ratio, single-rescuer and two-rescuer CPR. Practiced on a mannequin.
Rescue BreathingMouth-to-mouth and pocket-mask technique for unresponsive victims who have a pulse. Delivery rate and volume.
AED — Automated External DefibrillatorHow AEDs work, when to use one, step-by-step operation. Practiced on a training AED that simulates the decision sequence.
Secondary Survey and First AidHead-to-toe assessment for injury, treating common emergencies: bleeding control, shock management, burns, fractures, hypothermia.
Emergency Oxygen AdministrationDemand valve and non-rebreather mask operation. When to administer oxygen to diving injury casualties. DAN (Divers Alert Network) contact protocol.
React Right is scenario-based. You don't just learn what to do, you practise responding to a casualty (a mannequin) until the sequence becomes automatic.
Who can take React Right
Age 10 or older
No diving experience required — course is land-based
No medical background required
No prior first aid training required
React Right is open to anyone. It's required for SSI DiveMaster, but plenty of non-divers take it just for the life-safety skills.
React Right — land-based training format
React Right is entirely land-based, with no diving required. All the practical work (CPR, AED, scenario exercises) happens on land at our training facility.
Training tools: CPR mannequins (adult and infant), training AED unit that simulates a real AED's decision sequence, oxygen delivery kit (demand valve + non-rebreather mask + O2 cylinder), training materials and quick-reference cards.
Because it's land-based, React Right can slot into any day: your arrival day, a rest day between diving days, or alongside another course on your itinerary.
What's included in this course
Primary stabilisation training
CPR training on mannequin
First aid training — secondary survey and injury treatment
AED operation training
Emergency oxygen administration training
SSI React Right certification card
Not Included
- Personal expenses
- Accommodation
Certification: Your digital certification card is issued as soon as you finish. You're certified before you leave Goa, and it's valid anywhere in the world.
After React Right — what this certification enables
Prerequisite for SSI Stress & Rescue (combined path to DiveMaster)
Required for SSI DiveMaster certification
Cert valid for 2 years — renewable with a refresher session
Life-saving skills applicable anywhere — not just diving situations
Qualifies you to administer emergency oxygen to a diving casualty at the surface
Demonstrates safety commitment to any dive employer or DM internship programme
Renewal: React Right certification is valid for 2 years. After 2 years, a refresher session (typically half a day) renews the certification. This keeps your skills current and the cert active.
Why take your course with FlyingFish in Goa
Here's what actually sets us apart, no marketing fluff.
ScubaPro Equipment — Maintained on Schedule
Pro-grade gear serviced every 100 dives or 6 months, not when it fails. MK25/S620 regulator, Hydros Pro BCD, Aladin Sport dive computer. You train on the same equipment working instructors use.
Maximum 4:1 Diver-to-Instructor Ratio
Your instructor knows where you are underwater at all times. No crowded groups. If a skill needs more practice, you get the time — not the time left over after 8 other students.
Both SSI and PADI Certifications at One Centre
We teach both agencies at the same location. You choose which certification fits your future dive plans. We give you honest advice, not a push toward whichever we sell more of.
Professional Base at 5-Star Novotel Candolim
Proper briefing rooms, clean equipment rinsing stations, structured course schedule. The difference between a dive school and a beach shack matters when you are doing a multi-day certification course.
Hands-on CPR and AED for every student, not just a demo
In a group of 10, demonstration-heavy first aid courses give each student about 5 minutes on a mannequin. At our 4:1 ratio, everyone in a React Right session at FlyingFish gets real time on each skill. We've watched students arrive skeptical and leave genuinely confident, because they've actually done CPR rather than watched it.
Frequently Asked Questions
React Right covers the same core skills as standard first aid courses (CPR, AED, first aid, secondary survey) but is specifically structured for the diving community. It includes diving-specific content — emergency oxygen administration and DAN contact protocol — that standard first aid courses do not cover. The certification is recognised by the diving industry specifically because of this integration.
The React Right certification is valid for 2 years from the date of issue. After 2 years, a refresher session (typically half a day) is required to renew the certification. If you are pursuing SSI DiveMaster, the certification must be current when you begin DiveMaster training.
React Right (or equivalent first aid certification) is strongly recommended alongside Stress & Rescue and is required for the SSI DiveMaster certification. In practice, we recommend completing React Right before or on the same trip as Stress & Rescue — we can schedule both in the same visit.
Yes. Hands-on practice is the heart of React Right. You'll do compression-only CPR, full CPR with rescue breaths, and AED operation on mannequins. The practical sessions aren't optional extras, they're the core of the course, and you keep practising until you can run the sequence correctly and confidently.
Yes. React Right is open to anyone age 10 or older, and many non-divers take it as a standalone first aid qualification. The diving-specific content (oxygen administration, DAN protocol) is a bonus rather than a barrier, and the CPR, AED and first aid components apply everywhere.
React Right (SSI) and Emergency First Response (PADI) are the respective agency first aid certifications. Both cover the same core content — CPR, AED, first aid, oxygen administration. Both are valid for 2 years. React Right is the prerequisite for SSI DiveMaster; EFR for PADI DiveMaster. If you hold SSI certifications, React Right is the natural choice; if PADI, then EFR. Cross-recognition exists at many training centres.
