Drowning Standards, Research Paper Example

Introduction

Drowning may be defined as a death which is caused by asphyxia (choking) by the immersion of fluid in the lungs, usually that of water but other events can cause this. For example the occupants of Pompeii suffered asphyxiation by drowning under a cloud of volcanic ash caused by a pyroclastic flow. The concept of near drowning is an accident where death does not occur but can lead to a serious secondary complication and as such needs specialist medical care. Secondary drowning results in death caused by chemical and biological changes in the lungs; caused after a near drowning incident. (Word.com). This paper examines the concepts of drowning, including revival rates and drowning statistics in the USA.

Drowning facts

It is estimated that around 6,500 deaths occur each year as a resulting of drowning incidents in the USA. This compared to 140,000 world-wide, excluding unforeseen events like that of the great tsunamis that take place. Most of the victims tend to be children and teenagers. Almost 90% of the drowning does occur in fresh water, as opposed to the sea.

Other countries have far worse safety standards than the USA and amongst the worst is that of Vietnam and the death by drowning of children in that country – “Vietnamese youth swim unsupervised, responding to peer pressure despite lack of skills. Participants had negative attitudes toward life jackets using, swimming pools and lessons, because of the costs, but would attend lessons in Vietnamese.”(Quan).

Some of the statistical information in the USA is very alarming, particularly that related to child mortality. “Drowning is the leading cause of death for infantsand young children in 18 states and, nationally, ranks2nd only to automobile accidents, claiming lives of approximately4,000 children each year and leaving another12, 000 with some form of permanent brain damage.” (Infant Swimming Resource).

In 2009 there was a new International Standard (ISO) implemented in order to prevent drowning accidents at sea whilst enjoying the sport of sailing. “The new standard, ISO 10862:2009, Small craft – Quick release system for trapeze harness, provides requirements and test methods to ensure the correct operation of safety release devices, enabling the wearer to unhook rapidly in the event of an emergency”  (ISO).  Although sailing is a relatively safe sport there has been an increased number of drowning’s in recent years.  Most of these relating to sailing dinghies or catamarans where the sailors hang suspended from the boat in a trapeze harness.  If these fail the sailor can be thrown clear of the boat when it is moving at speed and subsequent recovery can prove to be a serious issue. Equally if the boat collapses and the person cannot be freed from the harness it is likely that the sailor could hang upside down in the water and drown. These safety improvements have been designed to address this problem – “ The safety requirements prescribed is a release time shorter than five seconds. Taking into account real life conditions, it also requires that the device be operable with only one hand and with the full finger neoprene gloves used in cold environments. At the same time, the safety mechanism should not to be released inadvertently.”  (ISO)

Works Cited

IFSTA. Reducing Deaths. 2010. 21 11 2010 <http://www.sta.co.uk/ifsta/docs/IFSTAA4_4pp.pdf>.

Infant Swimming Resource. National drowning statistics. 2005. 17 11 2010 <http://www.infantswim.com/assets/docs/ISR_Statistics2009.pdf>.

ISO. ISO standard to save sailing enthusiasts from danger and drowning . 9 7 2009. 22 11 2010 <http://www.iso.org/iso/pressrelease.htm?refid=Ref1235>.

Quan, B Crispin, E Bennett, A Gomez. “Beliefs and practices to prevent drowning among Vietnamese-American adolescents and parents.” Injury Prevention (2006): 427-429.

Word.com. Drowning Definition. 2010. 17 11 2010 <http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Drowning>.

World Conference on Drowning Prevention. Eye health and vision standards for lifeguards. 2010. 22 11 2010 <http://drowningprevention.ilsf.org/node/137>.