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The Keep Watch program promotes four key messages to prevent toddler drowning deaths in and around the home.
Supervision is the first Keep Watch action in preventing children from drowning death. Many drowning deaths happen in those few seconds while you answer the phone or when you go to answer the door.
Supervision means that the child is being constantly supervised by an adult at arms reach – it is not the occasional glance while you nap, read or do chores and it’s not watching children play outside while you are inside.
Don’t forget, it’s not just around pools that you need to supervise children. Supervision is just as important around bathtubs, fishponds, nappy buckets and water features.
Statistics show that children under the age of five years are most likely to drown at locations in and around the home and that a faulty or poorly maintained barrier is a common contributing factor to these deaths.
Creating a barrier between your child and the water is one of the most effective ways to prevent toddler drowning deaths. And it’s not just swimming pools — all water locations in and around the home can be potentially dangerous to young children.
Home swimming pools are one of the most common locations that toddlers drown. It is important that all pools have a barrier that is compliant with current legislation. It is also important to check your barrier on a regular basis to make sure that it isn’t damaged and is working properly. Never prop your gate open. Check out www.poolsafety.com.au for more information.
Safe Play Areas can be created to give children a defined, fun area to explore and play away from potential hazards including water bodies. These work particularly well on rural properties to reduce access to dams, irrigation channels troughs etc.
Helping your child learn water familiarisation skills can be fun for both the parent and the child. This can start from birth – bath time is a fantastic introduction to water. Making bath time fun can encourage children to feel comfortable with water.
Classes such as Infant Aquatics that are run through your local pool can provide a fun way to experience the water and teach safe practices and rules.
Be aware that water familiarisation classes are exactly that — they don’t aim to teach your child how to swim or ‘drown-proof’ your child. So remember, always keep watch when children are in or around the water, even if they are attending water familiarisation classes.
ENROL your child in a class now! Click here to find your local Endorsed Swim School.
Do you know how to resuscitate a child?
Sometimes a child’s life might have been saved if parents or carers had known how to effectively rescue and resuscitate them.
In Western Australia we have developed a Heart Beat Club resuscitation course which is specifically designed for parents and carers of young children. The course runs for three hours and covers first aid for common child injuries including burns and scolds, choking, drowning and provides information on how to perform child resuscitation.
Click here to enrol in a Heartbeat Club and learn how to save your child’s life today!
