An evidence-informed occupational health curriculum for pre-deployment preparation of aquanauts in underwater habitats: a scenario-based framework development study

Background

Underwater habitats represent emerging extreme workplaces in which pressure exposure, immersion, confined living, external underwater tasks, and delayed access to definitive care create combined occupational health and safety demands. Candidate selection establishes baseline suitability. It cannot, on its own, specify which preventive and response capabilities should be taught, practiced, and documented between selection and deployment.