Water safety for your child
Childhood drownings and near-drownings can happen in a matter of seconds and typically occur when a child is left unattended or during a brief lapse in supervision. Two minutes after submersion, a child will lose consciousness. Irreversible brain damage occurs after four to six minutes and determines the immediate and long-term survival of a child.
Figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that young children and teens are at greatest risk of drowning. Children under 5 and adolescents between the ages of 15 and 24 have the highest drowning rates. In fact, a swimming pool is 14 times more likely than a motor vehicle to be involved in the death of a child under the age 4. Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center encourages parents or care providers to use caution when children are around water.
According to Wendy Pomerantz, MD, MS, an emergency room physician at Cincinnati Children’s and one of the leading coordinators for the Comprehensive Children’s Injury Center, any child is at risk of drowning around water. Children less than 5 years old are more likely to drown in a pool that belongs to a friend or family member. Teenagers are more likely to encounter drowning and near-drownings in lakes and ponds.
Despite a 40% decline since 1987, drowning is still the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related death in the US in children ages 1 to 14. More than 900 children die each year from a drowning. For every child who drowns, four more are hospitalized; for every hospital admission, approximately four children are treated in hospital emergency rooms after near drowning incidents.
“Children can drown in even the smallest body of water including toilets, decorative fountains, bath tubs, buckets, etc. Any time you have a standing body of water that is accessible, make sure you supervise your child at all times,” Dr Pomerantz says. She also suggests that if your child has a medical illness that can cause a brief loss of consciousness, such as seizures or cardiac arrhythmias, never leave your child unattended in or near a pool or tub at any age.
Drowning prevention tips
Teaching your child how to swim doesn’t mean they’ll be safe in water. Knowledge is a powerful tool for combating water tragedies. Knowing how and where children drown, as well as the concrete steps you can take to avoid danger, may make a life-and-death difference for your family. To keep your family safe, remember these tips…
- All caregivers should learn CPR.
- Never leave toy in or around a pool, as your child may be tempted to go out to the pool without your knowledge and could fall in while trying to retrieve it.
- Make sure there is a telephone by the pool in case of an emergency.
- If you use an inflatable or plastic pool, make sure you dump the water out of the pool after each use and turn the pool upside down when finished with it.
- Install a fence at least four feet high around all four sides of the pool. Pool covers are not a substitute for four-sided fencing.
- Never leave children alone in or near water, even for a moment. An adult should be within arm’s length, providing “touch supervision.”
- Make sure pool gates self-close and self-latch at a height children can't reach.
- Keep rescue equipment (a shepherd's hook – a long pole with a hook on the end – and life preserver) nearby.
- Keep in mind that flotation devices are not a substitute for approved life vests and can give children a false sense of security.
- Teach children to swim when they're ready, usually after age 4.
- Empty and turn over all water containers after you use them.
- Teach children to never run, push or jump on others around water.
- Teach children never to swim alone.
- If your child is found floating in water start CPR immediately.
- If your child is missing check surrounding bodies of water immediately.