Administering Pediatric Safety for Childhood Emergencies
Editor’s Note: While we would love to take credit for all the terrific information included in this post …(and of course are incredibly flattered that our name appears in the title)…in truth, we had nothing to do with the creation of this wonderful infographic. All credit (along with our thanks) goes to Adams Safety Training.
Africans Are the Best Swimmers…At ANY Age
For many years, conventional wisdom has held that blacks can not swim. (I use the term ‘black’ to apply to anyone of African descent. The term is meant with respect to encompass the broad range of cultures descending from the African continent) A widely discredited academic report years ago stated that the physiology of a black person leads to their sinking which explained why blacks couldn’t swim. Prejudice dressed up with academic credentials to support entrenched beliefs, accepted as fact, all real evidence to the contrary. Such is the insidious nature of prejudice.
I had the great pleasure of meeting with Bruce Wigo, President of the International Swimming Hall of Fame in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. We discussed how cultural norms have kept African-Americans out of swimming lessons. The ISHOF, well worth a visit, has an excellent exhibit which explains how history really worked. The exhibit begins as: “In 1451, Europeans began their explorations of the west coast of sub-Saharan Africa and discovered that African people were by all accounts expert watermen and “the best swimmers in the world”. The Europeans attributed these extraordinary swimming skills to constant exercise and “from being brought up, both men and women from infancy, to swim like fishes.” The exhibit goes on to explain how valued Africans were in the Navy and on fishing fleets. During the period of slavery in the U.S., in the 18th century it was estimated that 80% of blacks could swim and only 20% of whites could swim, until it was determined that swimming allowed slaves to escape and was banned, relegating an entire cultural group to a higher risk of drowning deaths for many generations. If you’d like the full text, just e-mail me at rebeccalioness@gmail.com
Indigenous people and minorities consistently drown at higher rates than whites in virtually every country, and yet many of these groups come from a rich heritage that understood and respected water. Native Americans. Maori. Aboriginals. Inuits. And Africans. There is no rational reason. Please tell your kids this…and then teach them to swim.
Those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it – and die.
Teaching Babies and Toddlers to Swim = Healthy Kids + Safe Kids
Swimming lessons save lives. One of my most popular posts talked about what age you should allow your children to swim unsupervised, but at what age do you start them in swimming lessons and do swimming lessons really make a difference for young children?
A study proved that participation in formal swimming lessons cuts the risk of drowning for children ages 1-4 by 88%. Babies love the water and starting your kids in swimming lessons as infants will make them safer in the water, at a minimum it may keep them from panicking and buy you a precious 2 minutes that is the difference between life and a drowning death.
Starting children in the water early makes sense. Remember the first time you gave your new baby a bath? That rather concerned look on their face when you lowered them carefully into the water and then that flicker of recognition, ‘oh yes, water, I floated in my warm and comforting cocoon for the previous 9 months before you ejected me in a rather forceful manner’. I remember that my two quickly came to love bath time – the amazing splash of water that they were able to create just by moving their hands and feet. Such power! Such fun! Babies love the water and haven’t developed a paralyzing fear that can come with age, so it’s the best time to start them swimming early, in a positive and nurturing environment.
Need any more incentive? Swimming is proven to make children smarter, better physically coordinated as they mature and live longer. Plus swimming is amazing exercise as well, so kiss those worries of childhood obesity goodbye.
The bonus for parents? Click here for some great exercises that get you in shape and keep your baby safer their entire lives!
Best Water Safety Products: Because Kids Don’t Naturally Float
No one has eyes in the back of their head, but when it comes to water and young children an extra set of eyes would sure help keep children safer. Today I’m talking about some water safety products that can act like an extra pair of eyes.
If you have a pool and also have young children, non-swimmers, or a special needs child, think about investing in a wrist alarm. Also a great product to have when you are traveling or visiting grandma’s pool and your child doesn’t understand water safety. The child wears a colorful wristband that locks into place so that they can’t remove the band. If the sensor on the band is submerged in water the base station lights up and sounds a piercing alarm. I recently found the Safety Angel 2 system and can confirm that the alarm made me jump, which is exactly what you need if you think your toddler was napping, the door to the pool was locked, the gate was closed, or any other comforting thought. Click here to watch a video about the inventor, a former Special Forces Combat Diver.
If you do have a pool, I’d also invest in a door alarm for all outside doors that lead to the pool, ornamental pond or nearby stream or retention pond. Amazon has a huge selection. Of course, don’t forget to fence your pool with a self-latching gate.
When you are in the pool with a non-swimmer, not-so-confident swimmer or a special needs child, think about getting a SwimFin. I test drove one and they earned a permanent place in our swim bag when my children were younger. While only a Coast Guard approved life jacket will keep a child truly safe, SwimFin leaves arms and legs free to practice swim strokes, do huge jumps, keeps a child afloat and best of all, they look so cool your child will actually ask you to wear it!
Think I’m being overcautious with my layers of protection? Watch this video to be reminded of how creative children can be in crafting escape strategies. It’s not just children though, if you have elderly parents with dementia or Alzheimer’s they are also at risk. I have heard of many people who also buy alarm systems for their pets, though this video would indicate that where water is concerned some dogs just want to have fun!
If you are thinking ‘that seems a bit much to spend on something I don’t need’, these products are comparable in price to a car seat, which everyone buys, yet drowning kills almost as many children as car accidents every year.
Of course there is no substitute for direct adult supervision, because you are the lifeguard on duty, but technology can make your job easier, and your child safer.
I’m A Mom And I’m Pissed Off…(About Child Safety)
I’m a mom and I’m pissed off. Not a bit concerned. Not even angry. I’m pissed off as in, ‘I have a flame thrower and I’m not afraid to use it’ pissed off. Why? Because child safety is about as big a mom issue as you can get, and yet children keep drowning and no one is talking about it. We all know ‘stop, drop and roll’, but did you know that drowning kills more children in the U.S. every year than fire and gun accidents combined? If that didn’t get your attention, how about drowning kills as many 1-4 year olds as fire, transportation accidents and accidental suffocation/strangulation combined. When it comes to how to keep children safe, if we don’t start talking about water safety, we simply aren’t keeping our children safe.
It will take you two minutes to read this blog. It only takes two minutes to drown, two inches of water to drown, and in that time two children will drown, because one child drowns every minute. IF we had accurate statistics (and don’t get me started on that), I could state without qualifiers that drowning is as big a killer of children as malaria, one of the ‘top three’ killers according to the World Health Organization (WHO). But noooo, 59% of WHO members don’t even report drowning deaths. As a mom, can you imagine your child’s life being considered so insignificant that it doesn’t even count? That pisses me off.
Don’t worry though, I have enough statistics to (hopefully) make you as pissed off as I am.
- Children under 5 have the highest drowning mortality rates worldwide *
- Drowning is responsible for killing more children ages 1-4 in the U.S. than any other cause except birth defects. Two is the most dangerous year.
- For every child that drowns in the U.S., another five almost drown and more than 50% of those children require further care. Permanent brain damage starts to occur within one minute.
Drowning is the second leading cause of accidental death for children ages 1-14 in virtually every high-income country, but it is truly a global epidemic and a global mom issue.
- 96% of drowning deaths occur in low and middle-income countries.
- Most children drown before age 4. 2 is the most dangerous year.
- In Asia, where 2/3 of the world’s children live, drowning is responsible for almost one out of every five deaths from all causes for children ages 1-18.
As for the total number of children who drown every year? Officially it’s around 409,000, but we know that 59% of WHO countries don’t capture drowning deaths, so most experts estimate the number is at least double or triple that.
The great news? Drowning is preventable.
So what can you do?
First and foremost, teach your child about water safety. The American Academy of Pediatrics encourages parents to begin swimming lessons for kids as young as one. But don’t just stop at swim lessons, talk to them about water safety at all ages. Make it positive, repetitive and age-appropriate. You don’t want to scare them, you want to teach them, just like you teach your children to wash their hands and cross the street safely. SafeKids has some great advice.
Second, make your environment safe. The CDC has some great tips.
Third, get pissed off. Let’s make this a mom issue, because keeping children safe is what we do. If I’ve convinced you, just drop me a note at rebecca@rebeccawearrobinson.com or leave a comment. Let’s start talking about it.
Here’s some of the sites where I got my stats if you want to read more: CDC SwimSafe.org and WHO Fact Sheet
* (except in Canada and New Zealand where it’s adult males)
Keeping your Child Safer in Open Water
Did you know that children over the age of six usually drown in open water? That means that 71% of the Earth’s surface poses a drowning risk to your child. Rivers, lakes, oceans, retention ponds, streams, drainage ditches, blocked street drains, canals, and of course, flooding from violent storms and hurricanes. I could go on, but you get the idea.
So how do you keep your child safe around open water? And not just now, but for their whole life because adults also usually drown in open water.
Learn the International Open Water Safety Guidelines by heart, and teach your children.
International Open Water Safety Guidelines
Care of Self
- Learn swimming and water survival skills.
- Always swim with others.
- Obey all safety signs and warning flags.
- Never go in the water after drinking alcohol.
- Know how and when to use a life jacket.
- Swim in areas with a lifeguard.
- Know the weather and water conditions before getting in the water.
- Always enter shallow and unknown water feet first.
Care of Others
- Help and encourage others, especially children, to learn swimming and water safety survival skills.
- Swim in areas with lifeguards.
- Set water safety rules.
- Always provide close and constant attention to children you are supervising in or near water.
- Know how and when to use a life jacket, especially with children and weak swimmers.
- Learn first aid and CPR.
- Learn safe ways of rescuing others without putting yourself in danger.
- Obey all safety signs and warning flags.
What are the Guidelines? The Open Water Safety Guidelines were developed by an international task force that identified the lack of consistent clear messages around open water safety and decided something needed to change. The Guidelines are being adopted by an increasing number of organizations around the world, including: The American Academy of Pediatrics, the Risk Management Department of the U.S. National Parks, Royal Life Saving Society Australia, AUSTSWIM, Commonwealth Lifesaving – Royal Life Saving Society, USA Swimming Foundation, National Drowning Prevention Alliance, International Federation of Swim Teacher’s Association, Kenya Life Saving
