www.womanthismonth.com 55 September 2012 | Pause for Thought! Although pools may be a source of family fun, they can unfortunately be a source of family tragedy as well. It pays to know the risks and how to minimise them. For feedback, comments or questions contact Dr Jinan Darwish via email at: [email protected] • Install appropriate fencing on all four sides of the pool, to at least four feet high. In addition, there should be a self-closing and selflatching gate that opens outward from the pool, but the latch should be out of reach of children. It is estimated that 50 per cent of all children who drown could be prevented if proper fencing were installed. • Proper supervision should focus on two key aspects; keeping children from entering a pool unsupervised and appropriate safety practices when in a pool. Young or inexperienced swimmers should be kept within arm’s reach at all times. • Formal swimming lessons should be arranged for children who are ready for them, even as young as one year of age. • Even in pools, inexperienced swimmers may benefit from the use of appropriate life jackets. Air- or foam-filled toys, such as water wings, noodles or inner tubes, are not proper floatation devices and should only be used as toys, not as life-saving devices. • Ensure pools have proper safety devices installed. • All pool owners should be familiar with CPR and stay up-to-date with their training. There is evidence that starting immediate CPR on drowning victims prior to the arrival of emergency responders can have a substantial impact in reducing death and serious brain injury. Pool Safety Tips A ccording to information from the Centre for Disease Control, in the years 20072009 there were an estimated 4,200 pool or spa-related emergency incidents that arose from patients being submerged for a prolonged period of time. Nearly 400 fatalities a year associated with these injuries occur in children less than 15 years of age. The great preponderance of these injuries and fatalities were linked with swimming pools, especially in younger children who were four years of age or younger. This is not an argument to keep children out of pools. A splash of fun in the water not only provides breathtaking memories for children and families, but such experiences also get children moving and can help contribute to a child’s love of exercise. Moreover, becoming acquainted with pools and swimming can also lead to reduced drowning events in certain age groups. The message to take from this is not that a parent should keep their child out of pools, but rather to ensure that every safety precaution possible is taken to provide a safe environment in which our children can swim. It is estimated that if all parents followed some simple rules, anywhere from 200-400 lives might be saved per year. As stated by Steven Levitt, a professor of Economics at the University of Chicago and author of the best seller Freakonomics: “This would be more lives saved than from two of the most successful safety-interventions in recent decades: the use of child car seats and the introduction of safer cribs.” Potential lives saved from pool safety are far greater than from child-resistant packaging (an estimated 50 lives saved per year), keeping children away from airbags (less than five young children a year on average have been killed by air bags since their introduction), flame retardant pyjamas (perhaps 10 lives saved annually), or safety drawstrings on children’s clothing (two lives saved annually). Simply stated, keeping your children safe around water is one of the single most important things a parent can do to protect a child.
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