Water Safety - Prevention
If children are around bodies of water on a regular basis, it benefits
parents to learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), which, in case of an
emergency, can save lives, reduce the severity of injury, and improve the
chance of survival. CPR training is available through the American Red
Cross, the American Heart Association, and your local hospital or fire
department. Other specific drowning prevention tips include the following:
Infants (up to 1 year of age):Infants can drown in just one inch of water. Most infant
drownings occur in bathtubs. Some drowning prevention tips to remember
around your infant include the following:
- Never leave a young child alone in the bathtub, not even for a
minute. Even supportive bathtub "rings" cannot keep your child from
drowning.
- Empty any buckets or other containers with liquids.
- Keep bathroom doors closed and install childproof devices to keep
your child out of the bathroom (such as doorknob covers).
- Keep toilets closed and/or use childproof toilet locks.
Preschoolers (1 to 5 years of age):Children in this age group most often drown in swimming pools.
This often occurs when the preschooler wanders away from the house and
into the pool without parents being aware of the child's absence. Children
can slip into swimming pools without a sound or splash.
Swimming pool safety:
To protect your child from drowning in a swimming pool, the American Academy
of Pediatrics (AAP) offers the following tips:
- Always supervise your child closely in or near a swimming pool. Never
leave a small child alone in or near a pool, even for a moment.
- Remove toys from the pool so that your child is not tempted to reach
for them.
- Always empty blow-up pools after each use, and put them away.
- Do not let your child use a diving board in a pool that is not approved
for it.
- Avoid pool slides; they are very dangerous.
- Keeping electrical appliances away from the pool to prevent electric
shocks.
- Do not allow riding toys near pools.
- Keep a telephone near the poolside for emergency use.
- Install isolation fencing around the pool. A fence around your pool
not only protects your child, but other children in the area as well.
Fencing around pools should adhere to the following specification to
maximize your child's safety:
- The fence should separate the pool from the house and play area
of the yard.
- Fences around pools should have four sides and not include the
wall of the house as one side.
- Fencing must be at least 48 inches tall.
- Spacing between the fence slats should be no more than 4 inches.
For chain-link fences, the diamond shapes should not be bigger than
1-3/4 inches.
- The fence should have a self-closing and self-latching gate, with
latches that are above a child's reach. The gate should also open
away from the pool, so that if a toddler leans against an unlatched
gate, it will close.
- Other helpful devices, which, when used with pool fencing, maximize
the safety of your child, include pool alarms, door or gate alarms,
and automatic pool covers that cover the pool completely. Make sure
there is no standing water on the pool cover.
School-age children (5 to 12 years of age):Children in this age group are more likely to drown in bodies
of waters such as oceans, lakes, and rivers.
- Always supervise your child when he/she is swimming in any body of
water.
- Do not let your child dive unless you know the depth of the water
and it is at least nine feet.
- Do not allow your child to swim during thunderstorms or lighting
storms.
- Do not let your child rough-house with others in the water in ways
that may be mistaken for drowning.
- Teach your child to stay calm and tread water until help arrives if
he/she drifts too far from shore.
- Make sure your child wears a personal flotation device (PFD)
approved by the US Coast Guard when boating.
- Do not allow your child to swim around boats and/or in areas where
people are water-skiing.
- Avoid letting your child play with blow-up water toys in water that
is above the waist.
Adolescent children (12 to 18 years of age):
Although older children are more likely to know how to swim, they are at
risk for drowning due to overestimation of their skills, unawareness of
water currents or water depth, and when consuming alcohol or using drugs.
To protect your adolescent from drowning, the American Academy of Pediatrics
(AAP) offers the following tips:
- Insist that your adolescent always swim with a buddy.
- Encourage your adolescent to take swimming, diving, and water safety
or rescue classes to give him/her the skills needed to swim and dive
safely. These classes may also prevent your adolescent from acting
recklessly.
- Teach your adolescent never to swim or dive while under the
influence of alcohol or drugs.
- Make sure your adolescent checks the depth of the water before
diving.
Click here to view the
Online Resources page of this Web. |
