DROWNINGS

About one in five people who die from drowning are children aged 14 or younger. Kids are specially at risk because they are curious, fast and attracted to water but are not yet able to understand how dangerous it is. For every child who dies from drowning, another five receive emergency department care for nonfatal submersion injuries.

Children ages 1 to 4 have the highest drowning rates. In 2009, among children 1 to 4 years old who died from an untentional injury, more than 30% were from drowning, occuring most of them in home swimming pools. Drowning is responsable for more deaths among children 1-4 than any other cause except congenital anomalies. Among children between 1 and 14, fatal drowning remains the second-leading cause of uninentional injury-related death behind motor vehicle crashes.


WHAT FACTORS INFLUENCE CHILDREN DROWNING RISK?

• Lack of swimming ability
• Lack of barriers
• Lack of close supervision
• Location
• Failure to wear life jackets
• Seizure disorders

WHAT TO DO

• Get the child out of the water as quickly as possible.
• Begin rescue breathing and call for help
• Open the child's airway
• If he/she does not seem to breathe, place your mouth over child's nose and lips and give two breaths, each lasting about one second (if they are under age 1) or pinch the kid's nose and seal your lips over his/her mouth, giving two slow, full breaths from one to two seconds each (in case they are 1 or older)
• If doing that the chest rises, check for a pulse. If not, try again. If there is a pulse, give one breath every three seconds. Check for a pulse every minute and continue rescue breathing until the child is breathing on her own or help arrives.
• If you cannot find a pulse, with children under age 1, imagine a line between the child's nipples, and place two fingers just below its centerpoint. Apply five half-inch chest compressions in about three seconds. After five compressions, seal your lips over your child's mouth and nose and give one breath. With children 1 or older, use the heel of your hand to apply five quick one-inch chest compressions to the middle of the breastbone (just above where the ribs come together) in about three seconds. After five compressions, pinch your child's nose, seal your lips over his mouth, and give one full breath. All ages: Continue the cycle of five chest compressions followed by a breath for one minute, then check for a pulse. Repeat cycle until you find a pulse or help arrives and takes over.

HOW TO PREVENT CHILDREN FROM DROWNING

• Supervise children in or around the water
• Use the buddy system
• Seizure disorder safety
• Learn to swim
• Learn Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)
• Be careful with air-filled or foam toys
• Bear in mind the local weather conditions and forecast before swimming or boating.
• If you have a swimming pool at home, install four-sided fencing and clear the pool and deck of toys.