What the world of cave diving and rescue can teach us about risk management, innovation and teamwork

One of the absolute highlights of LogiPharma 2023 was undoubtedly the final session of day one. In the Amphitheatre at the Centre de Congrès de Lyon, the audience witnessed a thought-provoking keynote about the Tham Luang Cave Rescue in Thailand by the man who led the rescue, John Volanthen.

Now, you may be asking what the world of cave diving and rescue can teach us about the life sciences supply chain. Well, a lot, actually. In the keynote, the audience was able to learn about various techniques used to manage stress and solve complex problems in high-pressure environments.

John first gave us an overview of how the incident, which sent shockwaves around the world unfolded in Thailand. In 2018, 12 boys and their football coach took a routine trip to caves that they visited frequently, where dangerous weather caused them to be trapped deep within the cave system. What followed this introduction was an expert depiction of John’s experience throughout the rescue – from watching the news on the TV in the UK, finding the children, eventually saving them, and everything in between.

At many points, success looked impossible, and many believed it was. John and his diving team overcame fear, a lack of cooperation with multiple teams and immense danger to ultimately save those who were trapped.

John began talking us through his interest in cave diving, and how caves are ‘magical, and primal’, as well as how discovery, exploration and problem-solving are what drive him. He then went onto detail the events that took place over the weeks, as the rescue was planned and enacted.

John only became involved in the rescue when he saw the news in the UK. Prior to this, the Thai police and Thai navy SEALs had attempted to find the children, and their coach, to no success. John believed his unique set of skills, and years of planned cave diving would mean he had something to offer, and, after reaching out to the relevant teams he, along with his diving partner travelled to Thailand.

Working with the teams from Thailand and the US was particularly challenging according to John, and the first few days were fraught with John and his team feeling undervalued and under-resourced, which almost led to them leaving completely. What turned this situation around was finding a common point with the US team, building a relationship with them, and then doing the same with the Thai team. After this, the team were given the necessary resources. Two significant dives were then undertaken. Ones which, whilst involving poor visibility, dangerous water speeds, and the fear of not knowing if they would come across the bodies of the children, resulted in the divers reaching an area of the cave system where everyone believed the children would be. Sadly, they weren’t.

At this point, the safety standards would say that they should not have continued onward. However, safe in the knowledge that both John and his partner knew how to handle the dangers that would come their way, and a combined commitment to each other’s safety, they continued.

One breath at a time, they eventually found the children – all, somehow, alive. They bent the rules, but with good judgment and sound teamwork, they found them.

This was far from a success though as now, they needed to get them out. At this point, the Thai navy took over believing that they could take the children and their coach to safety, which they were unable to do.

Amidst the backdrop of depleting oxygen levels, and worsening weather conditions, John and his diving team stepped back in, and began planning the rescue attempt. The key, John says, was eliminating the risks wherever possible with John stating that he would consider himself risk-averse.

They began modifying equipment and focussed on planning, trialling, learning and improving. Practice rescues were carried out in swimming pools with stand-ins, which provided a key data point to prove that what they said would be possible, was.

John and his team knew they needed a well-thought-out plan that was safe but flexible, should the situation change mid-rescue. Extreme lengths were taken to mitigate risks wherever possible, which even included sedating the children during the rescue, in order to keep them as calm as possible during the treacherous route out of the cave system.

I’m sure those reading this have had times, either in personal or work lives where teams or individuals do not see eye to eye. Inevitably, this is a lose-lose situation. To truly find success, as John expertly articulates, teams need to come together and build trust before progress can be made.

The extraction, to have any chance of success, required a combination of people and equipment, and all had to work together without making one mistake along the way. John really drives this point in his keynote – teamwork and immense planning were the key. Eventually, the rescue attempt began, and four children a day were rescued, one at a time.

John then provided the audience with a great piece of insight into how things transpired, where the children actually decided between them which order they were brought out in. The kids ultimately decided that those who lived the closest would leave first, as they would be able to cycle home quicker to tell their parents.

At this point in the keynote, John described the fear that he experienced as he carried the children through the carefully mapped out route, where, during the three-to-four-hour journey, he would only know that the child he was carrying was alive when, occasionally, bubbles would come out of their mask, signifying that they were still breathing.

Once John reached the surface with one of the children, he would carefully hand them over to the US team, who would perform essential medical checks, and carry them out of the cave to safety. Eventually, however, all of the children, along with their coach, were brought to safety.

The impossible had been achieved. Great risks were taken in finding the children, and even more were taken to rescue them. As John ends his keynote with however, the success was not down to miracles, or magic, it was only down to great planning, great teamwork, coping with the unexpected, and being able to adapt as the situation changed. Something that everyone in the audience, as well as those reading this, can take and apply in our own lives.

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