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Swimming Safely
Don't Let Summer Fun Turn Tragic
By Gwen Morrison
Another thing that is surprising to many parents is that young children usually don't make noise or splash when they find themselves in trouble in the water. This startling reality is why so many children drown silently in pools and lakes each year.
The National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC) recommends careful adult supervision at all times when children are near a water source. The tips below are supplied by NCIPC to help parents keep their children safe around water.
- Watch children at all times when they are in or around water. Do not be distracted by the phone, a book or any other activity while supervising children near any source of water.
- Be involved with them – learn to swim.
- Make sure young children are always accompanied by an adult and that older children have someone with them when swimming.
- Always check the depth of the water before the child enters it.
- Do not allow children to chew gum or consume food while swimming, diving or just playing in the water.
- As a parent, it is advisable for you to be certified in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR); it could save a child's life!
- Make sure there is an available working telephone near the residential pools and beaches.
"For me, water safety is simply too big an issue – and I'm too lame a swimmer to tackle it alone," says Trina Wiebe of Powell River, British Columbia. "I rely on certified swim instructors to teach my children the proper way to behave in and around the pool, as well as life-saving techniques. It puts my mind at ease to know they are getting the best instruction possible, instruction that might someday mean the difference between life and death."