Category Archives for "Safety"

Academic paper on the drowning chain of survival

​See the article.

Looking at the first link

PREVENT DROWNING - Be safe in & around the water 

 It has been estimated that most drownings are preventable.

The ability to avoid a drowning contrasts withthe high rates of poor outcomes following these type of incidents. Drowning requires multiple layers ofprotection. To be effective, drowning prevention must be used by individuals near, on or around the water, andthose who supervise or care for others in water settings.

MAJOR ADVICE ACTIONS

  • Stay within arm’s reach of children when in or near the water 
  • Swim in water-safe areas where there lifeguards
  • Fence pools, spas and other aquatic with 4-sided or any fencing
  • Always wear a lifejacket when using watercraft (eg. Boat, kayak etc.)
  • Learn how to swim and water-safety survival skills.

Signs of trouble

Here are the major signs a child may be drowning, and they may be dramatically different than what you expect:

There will be no call for help: If you can’t breathe, you can’t speak or yell.

You may see their mouths sinking and bobbing back up repeatedly: If you see bobbing going on, you should check on the kid who is doing it. He could be in distress and you might be missing the signs.

They won’t be waving for help: Their instinct is to use their hands to pull their mouths out of the water so they can breathe, not wave for help.

They won’t be able to help their rescuer: They won’t be able to call attention to themselves, grab onto rescue equipment, or reach out for a lifeguard.

They are upright in the water and may not be kicking: If you see a child who is upright and not kicking, along with any of these other signs, get to them as soon as possible.

The incident happens quickly: A person who is drowning doesn’t have much time -- they can only struggle for 20 to 60 seconds before they go under.

A child isn’t making any noise: As every parent can tell you, children who are playing in the water make a lot of noise. If your child can’t be heard anymore when she’s playing in the water, assume something is wrong.

Source: gibsonins.com

World Health Organization seeking input on terms

https://www.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/drowning/non-fatal-drowning/en/

Non-fatal Drowning Terminology

Since its adoption at the 2002 World Congress on Drowning and subsequent publication in the Bulletin of the World Health Organization (Volume 83, Number 11, November 2005, 808-880), the accepted definition of drowning has provided clarity for academic researchers, database administrators, and medical and public health professionals. However, the absence of a uniform understanding and consistent use of the term “non-fatal drowning” results in a lack of precision in data collection, thus hindering research efforts and limiting a full understanding of this global public health problem.

A Working Group was established in 2017 to address this issue and has met on several occasions. The Working Group on Non-fatal Drowning has developed a draft Position Statement which provides a clarification statement and categorization framework that provide coherence and uniformity for the term “non-fatal drowning”.

This Position Statement is now available for review until 15 March 2019. The 12-page document and a link through which a review can be provided are both provided at the links provided in the article.

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