Without safety precautions children will be prone to accident around pools, in the pool and beaches. Children whose ages are less than four years old can even drown inside their own homes as they can drown in as low as 4 cm or 1.5 inches of water. There is no proof that shows that children, who are less than four years of age, would significantly benefit from swimming lessons. It is just too early for them to be swimming alone. Although swimming lessons will not exactly save children from drowning, at least these lessons can help improve children’s behavior around pools or beaches. An alternative for helping children, who are less than 4 years old, is to enroll them in programs that will help orient them about safety in and around pools or beaches.
PFDs (Personal Floating Devices) and life jackets are effective in preventing drowning in young children if they are used correctly. Make sure that the PFD or life jacket you are using for the toddlers is a fits perfectly. Remember, in Canada, there is no available safety standard for PFDs and life jackets for children who are less than 20 kg (20 lbs) in weight. Although PFDs and life jackets have the same purpose, that is to save one from drowning, they are slightly different in appearance. You will notice that PFDs have head support cushion. Its purpose is to prevent the face of an unconscious person from submerging into the water and preventing him or her from breathing. It is also safe to assist children even though they are using flotation devices. Most of the time, they end up leaving the flotation device and find themselves in the water with nothing to hold on to. An effective precaution is to ensure that young children already have their PFDs on, even though they are still on the boat. This way, it would be easier to prevent an accident, such as drowning if ever the child accidentally gets thrown overboard.
Safety is always essential when bringing children near or in the water. Children should never be left alone when they are inside pools or around them. Adults should always keep an eye on them just in case something goes wrong. Adults should also be mindful that when they are supervising a child, the child should also be within adult’s reach. These precautions should not only apply in pools or beaches, but should also apply in bath tubs.
An adult should always be around when children are near or in the water. He should see to it that the infants and toddlers are within his reach. Do not allow bath rings and bath seats in the water. Previous experiences have shown that these cause injuries and accidents to children. Extra care should be taken for babies, who do not know yet how to sit unaided, by holding them. Every infant should be supervised by one adult. As for toddlers, the most is two for every one adult. Do not allow teenagers to supervise infants or toddlers unless an accompanying adult is there as well. For those infants weighing at least 9 kg (20 lbs), PFDs or life jackets should be worn at all times when near or in the water.
Parents with pools in their homes should learn how to swim. They should learn first aid, CPR, and practice how to rescue a person when he/she is drowning. They must also know how to get immediate medical attention for the victim. These measures must be planned ahead so that, when first aid and other immediate relief fail, life-saving alternatives will be available.