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Taking the Kids: Ten water-safety tips that can save a child's life this summer

By Eileen Ogintz, Tribune Content Agency on

Who's watching the kids in the pool?

Someone should have eyes on them at all times -- even if they know how to swim. According to new research by Safe Kids Worldwide, completed with support from Nationwide Insurance’s Make Safe Happen program, more than 40 percent of children (5 to 17) who drowned in pools, reportedly, knew how to swim.

Certainly it's important for kids to learn to swim (check out the YMCA’s Safety Around Water programs), but that should never be seen as "drown-proofing" a child, the American Academy of Pediatrics says.

It hasn't been reported whether the 8-year-old Maryland boy who nearly drowned recently aboard Royal Caribbean's Anthem of the Seas knew how to swim. He was airlifted to Staten Island University Hospital where he was listed in critical condition.

He wasn't the first child to drown aboard ship and, sadly, I doubt he will be the last, as parents have so many misconceptions about water safety. I hate to sound preachy but the reality is that drowning is the leading cause of death for children 1 to 4 years old and the second-leading cause of death for those 5 to 14, according to Safe Kids Worldwide, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing unintentional childhood injuries. African-American children 5 to 19 drown in swimming pools at a rate more than five times higher than those of whites, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports. Those children who survive may face hospitalization and long-term disability due to brain damage. Two-thirds of fatal drownings occur each year between May and August.

You shouldn't count on lifeguards watching your kids, though parents do.

 

"Our survey found that many parents were surprised to learn that a lifeguard's job is to enforce pool rules, scan, rescue and resuscitate, not to keep an eye on any specific child," said Kate Carr, president and CEO of Safe Kids Worldwide. "We can't emphasize enough how important it is for parents to be fully alert and responsive to their children when they are in and around water."

More than half of the parents surveyed believe that when present, a lifeguard is the main person responsible for their child's supervision.

They also may not realize there aren't lifeguards, like onboard cruise ships. Major cruise lines (except for Disney) don't have lifeguards onboard, though they may have more than 1,000 kids splashing in their pools. Disney only added lifeguards after a near drowning on one of its ships.

Nearly half of the parents surveyed thought they would hear a child if he were in trouble in the water. Not true. Drowning too often is silent. And once a child begins to struggle, parents may have less than a minute to react. But even if a child were splashing, you might not notice at a crowded resort pool or onboard a ship where the pools are packed with kids. Bottom line: It's up to you to watch the kids.

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