Water Safety For Kids

Water safety for kids, lifeguard checklist for parents

As I’ve previously mentioned , I have some anxiety when it comes to my girls and water. With sweltering weather like we had this week, I’ve got to get over it.

That does not mean, however, that I’ll ever be at ease when my kids are swimming or that I’ll read an article like the one I just did and not want to spam everyone I know with it.

Bear with me and take a look at the excerpt below from “ Good Guard Bad Guard ,” by Mario Vittone, marine safety specialist with the U.S. Coast Guard in Norfolk, Va. Vittone maintains a superb Web site on water safety.

He is the author of last year’s much-forwarded and re-printed. “Drowning Doesn’t Look Like Drowning.” That one has been translated into 13 different languages and “liked” on Facebook by more than 225,000 people.

If you haven’t read the drowning piece, please do.

Vittone had originally planned for his site to focus on boating safety, but soon found an audience with parents. The vast majority of his readership now, he told me, is comprised of women with two children.

Perhaps then I’m not alone in fearing water? “It’s not that swimming is bad and unsafe. It’s that there’s a way to do it safely,” he said.

“Good Guard Bad Guard,” which he posted this month, makes a compelling case that even the best lifeguards cannot maintain vigilant concentration for more than 30 minutes. “The first step to avoid drowning is when you drop off the kid at the pool. You have to know who the lifeguard is,” he said.

In the piece, Vittone provides his personal checklist for relying on a lifeguard. Here it is:

1. At least two lifeguards, or one guard and a supervisor or other staff member (helper) to keep everyone out of the water while the guard takes a real break.

2. The guard gets a real break every 30 minutes.

3. The guard knows to change his point of view of the pool often, never staying in the same spot for too long. Staying in the same spot decreases his attention span.

4. Minimal distractions for the guard: No wires in his ears (MP3 players), no chatting with anyone, no eating while watching the water.

5. I ask the guard to show me his cell phone. If he can without standing up and walking inside to get it — he’s fired. I’ll watch my own kids, thanks. If you see your lifeguard texting while he or she is supposed to be watching the pool, you do not have a lifeguard on duty.

Prevent drowning: Water safety tips for parents and their kids ...

Water wisdom: Constant supervision is key

Drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional death of children age 14 and younger, taking the lives of nearly 900 children each year. Most occur in swimming pools, but lakes, rivers and oceans can also be dangerous. Children playing in smaller bodies of water, such as wading pools, bathtubs, buckets, toilets, spas and hot tubs should also be supervised.

Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and Safe Kids Georgia are partnering to encourage parents to become “Water Watchers” this summer. Although many parents are nearby when their children are in or around the water, most do not devote 100 percent of their attention to supervising playtime.

Recent research by Johnson & Johnson shows that 88 percent of children who drowned were under adult supervision and that parents are overconfident about their children’s safety and abilities around water. Because drowning can occur silently and in a matter of seconds, at least one parent or adult should always be a completely focused “Water Watcher,” dedicated to monitoring children playing in the water.

In addition to constant supervision, parents should also keep in mind the following water safety tips:

- Practice “touch supervision” by keeping children within reasonable reach at all times. It is especially vital to eep children in baby bath seats and rings within arm’s reach. Because drownings often occur silently, “touch supervision” can save lives.

- Enroll your children in swimming lessons around age 4, but do not assume swimming lessons make your child “drownproof.” There is no substitute for active supervision.

- Tell children never to run, push or jump on others around water.

- Eliminate all potential drowning hazards such as empty buckets, large containers and wading pools. Keep toilet lids shut and use toilet locks.

- Make sure children swim only in designated safe areas of rivers, lakes and oceans. Outfit children in a U.S. Coast Guard-approved personal safety device around oceans, rivers, lakes or when participating in water sports. “Water wings” or inflatable tubes do not replace life jackets. Most states require children younger than 10 to wear an appropriately-sized flotation device when on a boat or personal watercraft.

- Keep rescue equipment, a telephone and emergency numbers by the pool.

- Teach children to never dive into a river, lake, ocean or body of water less than 9 feet deep.

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