PADI Medical Form in Phuket: When You Need a Doctor to Sign It and Why

Clinically reviewed by Dr. Ponlawat Pitsuwan, Physician, Takecare Medical Clinic Phuket. Last reviewed: September 2026

You booked the Open Water course three months ago, flew into Phuket, got to your dive shop in Patong, and the instructor handed you a form you had never seen before. You answered honestly. You ticked yes to the question about your blood pressure medication. Now the course cannot start until a doctor signs off. That is the moment most divers realise this form is not just paperwork.

The PADI Diver Medical Participant Questionnaire is a health screening tool used for every scuba course and Discover Scuba Diving experience in Phuket. It also applies to freediving courses. For most people it takes five minutes and no doctor is needed. But if you answer yes to certain questions, a physician must evaluate you before any dive operator is permitted to take you in the water. Here is exactly what that means, which conditions trigger it, and how to get it sorted without losing a dive day.

What the PADI Medical Form Actually Is

The full name is the Diver Medical Participant Questionnaire, published by the Diver Medical Screening Committee. It has three parts. Page one is a short self-screening list. Page two is a detailed checklist covering specific medical conditions by body system, including heart, lungs, ears, and mental health. Page three is the Physician Evaluation Form, which only a doctor completes.

You only reach page three if your answers on pages one or two send you there. The dive operator cannot assess your medical history for you, and they are not allowed to advise you on what to write. If you are uncertain about any answer, the form instructs you to mark yes and see a physician.

This applies to both scuba and freediving courses under PADI. A Discover Scuba Diving participant fills in the same form as an Open Water student. There is no shorter version for a single-day resort dive.

Who Needs a Doctor and Who Does Not

If every answer on pages one and two is no, you self-sign the form and hand it back to your instructor. No clinic visit, no delay.

If you answer yes to question 3, question 5, or question 10 on the primary questionnaire, a doctor signature is mandatory. These questions relate to lung and breathing conditions, heart surgery or chest procedures, and mental health or addiction history. Yes means you go to a physician, no exceptions.

A yes to any item in the page two detail section also triggers a physician referral. Common examples include asthma, high blood pressure, diabetes, epilepsy, recent ear or sinus surgery, and certain psychiatric medications. If you have answered yes anywhere and are not sure what to do next, the answer is always: see a doctor before your course begins.

Medical Conditions That Commonly Require Dive Clearance in Phuket

I see the same conditions come through the door at Takecare Clinic week after week. These are the ones most likely to send a Phuket diver to a physician.

Asthma is the most common. Mild, well-controlled asthma with normal resting lung function is often approvable, but the physician must assess you in person. Cold-induced or exercise-induced asthma is harder to approve, because cold dry air from a regulator can trigger breathing problems on ascent. Do not answer no on the form if you have a known asthma diagnosis, even if you rarely use your inhaler.

High blood pressure is the second flag I see most often. Well-managed hypertension on stable medication may still be cleared, but the doctor needs to check your current readings and confirm your medications do not pose a diving risk. Some blood pressure drugs interact poorly with the physical stress of diving at depth.

Diabetes, epilepsy, recent ear or sinus surgery, cardiac arrhythmia, and a history of a collapsed lung all require physician review. A previous diving injury requiring recompression treatment also triggers a mandatory evaluation. If you are on any medication that affects your alertness, coordination, or heart rate response, bring the packaging to your appointment.

What the Doctor Does and What Approved Actually Means

The Physician Evaluation Form has two options. Approved or Not Approved. That is it.

This is a Diver Medical Screening Committee rule, and Phuket dive shops enforce it strictly. A doctor cannot write "approved for shallow dives only" or "approved up to 12 metres." Any added text, any conditions, any depth limits must be treated by the dive professional as Not Approved. If your form comes back with conditions written on it, you will need a fresh evaluation.

At Takecare Clinic, our doctors know the PADI form requirements and complete the physician section correctly. We check your current health status, review your medications, measure your blood pressure and resting heart rate, and decide based on the published guidelines. If we approve you, the form goes back to your dive shop ready to use. If we cannot approve you, we will explain exactly why and what your options are.

Getting Your PADI Medical Form Signed in Phuket Without Losing a Dive Day

Most divers who need a doctor signature find out on the first morning of their course. You are already in Phuket, you have a boat leaving in two days, and you need this sorted today.

Takecare Clinic is a walk-in clinic in Patong with English-speaking physician care and no appointment needed. Most PADI medical form assessments are completed within a single visit. Bring all three pages of the form, your passport, and a list of any medications you are currently taking. If your dive shop gave you only pages one and two, ask them for the Physician Evaluation Form before you come in.

We see divers from across the island, not just Patong. Whether you are staying in Kata, Karon, Kamala, Rawai, or Chalong and have a liveaboard departure from Ao Chalong pier, same-day clearance is achievable. Call the clinic before you leave your hotel to confirm a physician is available.

For divers who want clearance before arriving in Thailand, your home GP can sign the form, provided they complete the Physician Evaluation Form section correctly and mark only Approved or Not Approved with no conditions added. If they are unfamiliar with the form, send them the PADI guidelines in advance. Many home doctors add conditions out of caution, and the form will be rejected at your dive shop.

How Long the Clearance Is Valid and When You Need a New One

A signed PADI medical clearance is valid for 12 months from the date of the physician’s signature. Self-signed forms follow the same rule.

The 12 months only holds if nothing changes. A new diagnosis, a new medication, a procedure, or a significant illness voids the clearance immediately, regardless of how much time is left. Phuket expats and liveaboard regulars sometimes assume a clearance from a previous trip carries over. If your health has changed at all since the last signature, get a fresh evaluation before you get back in the water.

Dive instructors living and working in Phuket long-term often need annual renewals as part of their professional requirements. A walk-in appointment at Takecare Clinic covers this quickly, without scheduling weeks in advance. If you need a medical certificate in Phuket for your dive clearance or any other purpose, the process is the same: come in, get assessed, and leave with the signed documentation the same day.