A child falling into a pool is a sad reality that we need to face. There are many instances where young children do fall into pools at social gatherings like parties etc. Young children have spontaneous and curious minds, and love to explore and cannot see or spot danger as an older child or an adult would. They love to frolic and play around water which may lead to rather unfortunate situations if the could has not been correctly trained to swim by a parent or swimming instructor. We at Splash Aquademy care about such instances and don’t just want to inform you about dangerous events that can occur but to leave you with adequate knowledge and a solution on what to do should this happen while you’re around. You can save a life! Don’t only read this but share this post to help many all over our country. Together we can save precious lives. Here’s what to do…
- Yell for help and check the scene to make sure that you can safely help the child.
- Get the child out of the pool and onto the pool deck.
- Check for consciousness tap and shout, “Are you okay?”
- If someone is with you, have them call an ambulance (TO CALL AN AMBULANCE IN SOUTH AFRICA DIAL 10177, or 112 (from mobile phones). Determine if the child is breathing: tilt the head back, if you don’t hear or feel breathing or see the chest rising, give 2 Rescue Breaths, then check for a pulse. Begin Rescue Breathing or perform CPR immediately and continue until emergency help arrives.
- If you are alone and the child is not breathing and/or does not have a pulse, start CPR immediately. After one minute, call an ambulance. Return to the child and continue CPR until help arrives.
- To prevent drowning get your baby into swimming lessons.