Viva Vitality: Make drowning prevention awareness part of your spring

By Medicine Hat News on March 23, 2018.

As winter melts away, and spring begins to appear, we experience the spring thaw. Although spring is welcome by all Albertans, it is also the time of year when bodies of water rise, reminding us all about the risks of drowning.

As a young child, I enjoyed exploring the outdoors and escaping into the never-ending fascination of what nature had to offer. Playing near ponds, searching for minnows or other new and exciting wildlife brings back some of my favorite memories as a child. Living in the mountains, surrounded by lakes, ponds and rivers, I understand how crucial it is to educate your children about drowning prevention.

According to Parachute, “A young child can drown in as little as 2.5 centimetres (one inch) of water in just seconds.” Thinking back to my days of exploring around large and small bodies of water, I am genuinely grateful that I never had any near-drowning experiences, but it does occur and is, sadly, the second leading cause of death for children within Canada.

Drowning has also been identified by the World Health Organization as the third-leading cause of unintentional injury-death globally, making this a crucial topic for discussion. For children, the majority of drowning instances occur when a child is left unsupervised and is the result of drowning in home pools, ponds, rivers, and lakes (Parachute).

Drowning is a global health issue, yet there are ways to reduce the risk and to prevent injury and death. The most critical way to prevent children from drowning for parents to always be supervising them when they are in or around water. Parents should be an arm’s length away for children under five who are playing in the water and cannot swim well.

Ensuring that you as the parent are a competent swimmer or having an experienced swimmer supervise your child can reduce the risk of drowning. Being trained in First Aid and CPR can also reduce the risk of death due to drowning. It is also crucial that young children and inexperienced swimmers wear life jackets, in and around water as well as on boats. Although a life jacket can save lives, parents should still be watching their children as life jackets do not ultimately prevent drowning.

Getting your child trained and enrolling them in swimming lessons can also reduce their risk of drowning. Check out your community’s leisure centre guide for upcoming swimming lesson dates as well as additional training to help reduce the number of drownings that occur. Finally, talk with your children about the risks of playing around water and help them realize why it is important to be cautious when playing in and around bodies of water.