Drowning In Children Research Paper
Drowning Of Children 0 – 5 Years Of Age: Preventable Or Inevitable?
Injury is a significant cause of illness, hospitalisation, disability and death in Australian children and adolescents. This research based report by first year nursing student, Karla McCulloch, aims to promote awareness and educate nursing students and colleagues, as well as the general public and parents, on unintentional injury. In particular, it will focus on drowning in children from birth to 5 years of age. The report will discuss the definition of what constitutes a drowning, look at patterns of drowning, facts and statistics on drowning and the main factors that contribute to drowning in children. It will also look at what action can be implemented to minimise the …show more content…
risk of drowning for this age group.
“The inquisitive, exploratory nature of children and young children means that injuries and accidents are common.” (Barnes and Rowe, 2008, p. 136)
Water touches every aspect of children’s lives. It provides nourishment, cleanliness and comfort among other benefits and is a necessity for survival (World Health Organisation 2008)
As adopted by the 2002 World Congress on Drowning, drowning can be defined as:
“The process of experiencing respiratory impairment from submersion/immersion in liquid.” (World Health Organisation 2008)
Drowning affects people of all ages but among the various age groups, children under 5 years of age have the highest drowning mortality rates worldwide.
(World Health Organisation 2000)
An international comparison of drowning rates indicates that Australia has the second worst record in the world for toddler drowning. (Kidsafe WA 2005)
Drowning is the most common cause of accidental death in Australian children aged less than 5 years, and 70% are aged between 1 and 3 years. (Kidsafe SA 2004)
Studies show that for every child under the age of 5 years that drowns in Australia, up to 10 children are admitted to hospital as the result of a near-drowning incident. The near drowning- of a child is “the result of a submersion, where the child has been immersed in water”. (Kidsafe SA 2004)
In Australia in 2007/2008, 27 drowning deaths were recorded in young children aged between 0-4 years of age. The majority of drowning deaths of children in this age group was the consequence of falling or wandering into the water, with the swimming pool accounting for the largest portion of these deaths. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia …show more content…
2008b)
In 2004, the overwhelming majority (approximately 97%) of child drowning deaths occurred in low-income and middle-income countries. This is possibly due to lack of education and differences in opportunities to learn to swim. (World Health Organisation 2008)
Children have a natural attraction to water. They often have minimal fear and little to no understanding or awareness of the danger associated with it. (Kidsafe WA 2005) There is no evidence of a decisive reason as to why children of this age are at risk of drowning, but developmental stage, lack of supervision and inadequate safety standards may be contributing factors. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008a)
The risks and circumstances with childhood drowning are often related to the developmental stage of the child. (World Health Organisation 2008)
Infants and toddlers have limited strength, judgement and physical co-ordination. They generally do not have the co-ordination required to swim and breathe simultaneously. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008b).
Children within this age group are also susceptible to drowning as they can fall easily into water as their heads are heavier than the rest of their body (Kidsafe WA 2005)
There is a lack of evidence to imply that a child under the age of three years can develop sufficient swimming skills to prevent drowning. Whilst water familiarisation skills are important, they will not make a child drown-proof (Kidsafe WA 2005)
Studies reveal that drowning in young children is often associated with a direct lack of or lapse in adult supervision. Inadequate supervision is a contributory factor for childhood drowning of all types. (World Health Organisation 2000)
At times, parents and caregivers mistakenly believe that a child can safely be left unattended for short periods of time. They may also have unrealistic expectations that children would obey instructions and stay away from water and the hazards associated with it. (Kidsafe WA 2005) Parents and caregivers can also become complacent around the home, and therefore are not as attentive in supervision, contributing to the risk of drowning. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008a)
Children can drown silently in less than two minutes. Childhood drowning is often a silent event as children do not usually cry out for help. A drowning child may not cough or splash. The child swallows water, sinks and loses consciousness in less than two minutes. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008a)
75% of swimming pool drowning could have been prevented had isolation fencing and functioning gates been in place (Kidsafe WA 2005). Restricting a young child’s access to water either by putting a barrier around the water or around the child can significantly reduce the risk of drowning (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008b)
Studies have revealed that lack of education in rescue and resuscitation has also been a contributing factor to childhood drowning. These studies have shown that children who receive immediate resuscitation – before the arrival of medical personnel- have improved outcomes. (World Health Organisation 2008)
Australia and the communities within it have enforced and promoted numerous actions to help address the issue of childhood drowning.
Legislative measures can have significant impact on injury prevention, especially when combined with strong enforcement. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008a)
In 1993, the Australian government along with Standards Australia introduced legislation for mandatory isolation fencing for all new backyard swimming pools, known as standard AS1926.
This legislation is enforced by Standards Australia. (Kidsafe SA 2004)
This standard identifies the mandatory isolation fencing and “specifies requirements for the design, construction and performance of fences, gates, retaining walls, windows, door sets and balconies intended to form part of a barrier that will restrict the access of young children to swimming pool.” (Standards Australia International 1993)
A dramatic drop in drowning incidents has been recorded since the introduction of this legislation. (Kidsafe SA 2004)
Communities have also adopted other strategies to help minimise the risk of childhood drowning. Such strategies include the promotion and availability of educational tools such as books/booklets, brochures, posters and videos. Media campaigns have also been adopted to assist in providing community awareness and education on the issue of drowning. Numerous organisations also conduct various resuscitation classes for parents and carers. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia
2008a)
Although studies show that since the introduction of mandatory legislation for swimming pools, drowning incidents have been reduced (Kidsafe SA 2004), drowning still remains the most common cause of accidental death in Australian children aged less than 5 years. (Kidsafe SA 2004) Supervision remains a key in reducing this statistic. (World Health Organisation 2000)
Many effective and promising interventions have been adopted by communities to assist with the reduction of drowning in young children (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008a), but a holistic approach is required based on the particular pattern of drowning observed in a given location. (World Health Organisation 2008)
Australia and the communities within Australia need to adopt childhood drowning as a national priority in order to find a solution. Australia has the second worst record in the world for toddler drowning (Kidsafe SA 2004). Nurses, parents and Australia in its entirety need to form a united front and implement the strategies mentioned throughout this report and not accept childhood drowning as being inevitable.
Whilst childhood drowning can be inevitable in certain circumstances, the majority of incidents are preventable through incorporating and implementing all of the strategies and interventions associated with childhood drowning. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008a)
Injury is a significant cause of illness, hospitalisation, disability and death in Australian children and adolescents. This research based report by first year nursing student, Karla McCulloch, aims to promote awareness and educate nursing students and colleagues, as well as the general public and parents, on unintentional injury. In particular, it will focus on drowning in children from birth to 5 years of age. The report will discuss the definition of what constitutes a drowning, look at patterns of drowning, facts and statistics on drowning and the main factors that contribute to drowning in children. It will also look at what action can be implemented to minimise the …show more content…
risk of drowning for this age group.
“The inquisitive, exploratory nature of children and young children means that injuries and accidents are common.” (Barnes and Rowe, 2008, p. 136)
Water touches every aspect of children’s lives. It provides nourishment, cleanliness and comfort among other benefits and is a necessity for survival (World Health Organisation 2008)
As adopted by the 2002 World Congress on Drowning, drowning can be defined as:
“The process of experiencing respiratory impairment from submersion/immersion in liquid.” (World Health Organisation 2008)
Drowning affects people of all ages but among the various age groups, children under 5 years of age have the highest drowning mortality rates worldwide.
(World Health Organisation 2000)
An international comparison of drowning rates indicates that Australia has the second worst record in the world for toddler drowning. (Kidsafe WA 2005)
Drowning is the most common cause of accidental death in Australian children aged less than 5 years, and 70% are aged between 1 and 3 years. (Kidsafe SA 2004)
Studies show that for every child under the age of 5 years that drowns in Australia, up to 10 children are admitted to hospital as the result of a near-drowning incident. The near drowning- of a child is “the result of a submersion, where the child has been immersed in water”. (Kidsafe SA 2004)
In Australia in 2007/2008, 27 drowning deaths were recorded in young children aged between 0-4 years of age. The majority of drowning deaths of children in this age group was the consequence of falling or wandering into the water, with the swimming pool accounting for the largest portion of these deaths. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia …show more content…
2008b)
In 2004, the overwhelming majority (approximately 97%) of child drowning deaths occurred in low-income and middle-income countries. This is possibly due to lack of education and differences in opportunities to learn to swim. (World Health Organisation 2008)
Children have a natural attraction to water. They often have minimal fear and little to no understanding or awareness of the danger associated with it. (Kidsafe WA 2005) There is no evidence of a decisive reason as to why children of this age are at risk of drowning, but developmental stage, lack of supervision and inadequate safety standards may be contributing factors. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008a)
The risks and circumstances with childhood drowning are often related to the developmental stage of the child. (World Health Organisation 2008)
Infants and toddlers have limited strength, judgement and physical co-ordination. They generally do not have the co-ordination required to swim and breathe simultaneously. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008b).
Children within this age group are also susceptible to drowning as they can fall easily into water as their heads are heavier than the rest of their body (Kidsafe WA 2005)
There is a lack of evidence to imply that a child under the age of three years can develop sufficient swimming skills to prevent drowning. Whilst water familiarisation skills are important, they will not make a child drown-proof (Kidsafe WA 2005)
Studies reveal that drowning in young children is often associated with a direct lack of or lapse in adult supervision. Inadequate supervision is a contributory factor for childhood drowning of all types. (World Health Organisation 2000)
At times, parents and caregivers mistakenly believe that a child can safely be left unattended for short periods of time. They may also have unrealistic expectations that children would obey instructions and stay away from water and the hazards associated with it. (Kidsafe WA 2005) Parents and caregivers can also become complacent around the home, and therefore are not as attentive in supervision, contributing to the risk of drowning. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008a)
Children can drown silently in less than two minutes. Childhood drowning is often a silent event as children do not usually cry out for help. A drowning child may not cough or splash. The child swallows water, sinks and loses consciousness in less than two minutes. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008a)
75% of swimming pool drowning could have been prevented had isolation fencing and functioning gates been in place (Kidsafe WA 2005). Restricting a young child’s access to water either by putting a barrier around the water or around the child can significantly reduce the risk of drowning (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008b)
Studies have revealed that lack of education in rescue and resuscitation has also been a contributing factor to childhood drowning. These studies have shown that children who receive immediate resuscitation – before the arrival of medical personnel- have improved outcomes. (World Health Organisation 2008)
Australia and the communities within it have enforced and promoted numerous actions to help address the issue of childhood drowning.
Legislative measures can have significant impact on injury prevention, especially when combined with strong enforcement. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008a)
In 1993, the Australian government along with Standards Australia introduced legislation for mandatory isolation fencing for all new backyard swimming pools, known as standard AS1926.
This legislation is enforced by Standards Australia. (Kidsafe SA 2004)
This standard identifies the mandatory isolation fencing and “specifies requirements for the design, construction and performance of fences, gates, retaining walls, windows, door sets and balconies intended to form part of a barrier that will restrict the access of young children to swimming pool.” (Standards Australia International 1993)
A dramatic drop in drowning incidents has been recorded since the introduction of this legislation. (Kidsafe SA 2004)
Communities have also adopted other strategies to help minimise the risk of childhood drowning. Such strategies include the promotion and availability of educational tools such as books/booklets, brochures, posters and videos. Media campaigns have also been adopted to assist in providing community awareness and education on the issue of drowning. Numerous organisations also conduct various resuscitation classes for parents and carers. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia
2008a)
Although studies show that since the introduction of mandatory legislation for swimming pools, drowning incidents have been reduced (Kidsafe SA 2004), drowning still remains the most common cause of accidental death in Australian children aged less than 5 years. (Kidsafe SA 2004) Supervision remains a key in reducing this statistic. (World Health Organisation 2000)
Many effective and promising interventions have been adopted by communities to assist with the reduction of drowning in young children (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008a), but a holistic approach is required based on the particular pattern of drowning observed in a given location. (World Health Organisation 2008)
Australia and the communities within Australia need to adopt childhood drowning as a national priority in order to find a solution. Australia has the second worst record in the world for toddler drowning (Kidsafe SA 2004). Nurses, parents and Australia in its entirety need to form a united front and implement the strategies mentioned throughout this report and not accept childhood drowning as being inevitable.
Whilst childhood drowning can be inevitable in certain circumstances, the majority of incidents are preventable through incorporating and implementing all of the strategies and interventions associated with childhood drowning. (Royal Life Saving Society Australia 2008a)