OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the working and health conditions faced by METHODS: The study was conducted in five fishing communities. A semi-structured questionnaire was administered to 113 fishers (~15% of the commercial divers in the region). Non-probabilistic snowball sampling was used to identify participants. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics
a Chi-squared test was used to identify significant correlations. RESULTS: Most respondents (98%) were men (average age of 41 years), with an average of 17.6 years of commercial diving experience. Only 27% of the divers were certified scuba divers, and 40% had received some type of dive training. Notably, 64% of divers had some chronic illness, and 75% had suffered some type of diving-related injury. Marine animal bites were the most common type of injury. The majority of respondents (97%) fished without the proper permits, and 67% did not have access to social insurance. Lastly, 50% had suffered symptoms of decompression sickness. CONCLUSION: The conditions surrounding the employment and health of