Safety + Survival = Security
Jump in and Learn to Swim! With summer around the corner and festivities about to begin Maureen’s Swim Academy wants to give you some friendly reminders on water safety.
- A refresher course every year is essential for every student. After a long winter, children forget naturally and could possible build up fear of the water. Maureen’s Swim Academy reviews proper techniques and safety measures with their students and within a couple of days, we can get them right back to where they were all the while helping them to progress to the next level.
- Always keep your eyes on your children when they are in or around water. Did you know a bucket of water, or even a toilet can be just as harmful as a pool or pond?
- Large flotation devices in your pool can be hazardous. They can block your view of a pool accident or they can hinder a child from coming up for a breath of air. If toys and flotation devices are left in the pool, they can entice children to jump in unattended.
Maureen’s Swim Academy wants everyone to have a safe and wet summer. We are proud of our successful program and celebrate water safety and swimming through lots of praise, smiles and encouragement. We have been serving the Tampa Bay Area for over a decade covering Hillsborough, Pasco, and Pinellas counties. Our individually designed programs meet the needs of every swimmer, from special needs to adults, children and babies. We know we are not the only fish in the sea, but we have been told we are STROKES ABOVE THE REST!
How Severe is this Drowning Problem?
- Very severe, it is a shame that the media does not ever give facts and statistics other than the few drownings they report about each summer locally.
- From 2005-2009, there have been an average of 3,533 fatal drownings (non-boating related) annually in the United States — about ten deaths per day. An additional 347 people died each year from drowning in boating-related incidents.
- About one in five people who die from drowning are children 14 and younger. For every child who dies from drowning, another five receive emergency room care for nonfatal submersion injuries.
- More than 50% of drowning victims treated in emergency rooms (EDs) require hospitalization or transfer for further care (compared with a hospitalization rate of about 6% for all unintentional injuries). These nonfatal drowning injuries can cause severe brain damage that may result in long-term disabilities such as memory problems, learning disabilities, and permanent loss of basic functioning (e.g., permanent vegetative state).
-CDC Center of Disease Control and Prevention
Here is an article that was published July 4th, 2009 in the Tampa Tribune
Think Safety Before Kids Hit Water
Florida kids aren’t born with fins. Just like kids everywhere, they could probably use a little safety refresher before they head into the water- whether it’s the Gulf or the neighborhood pool.
We asked Maureen Boucher, owner of the Tampa Bay-based Maureen’s Swim Academy, to give us some basic tips for keeping kids safe. Here’s her advice:
Refresher courses are invaluable. Children forget! That is normal. In just one or two days, a teacher can get them back to where they left off after last year’s lessons, and then further their skills.
Accidents happen. Never leave your child or children unattended in the pool – or even the bathtub. Do not walk away for a second.
Stay vigilant. Think three times before ever letting someone else watch your children in, on or around any body of water. Do not allow your children to attend a pool party without a lifeguard hired to watch the pool.
All pools are not created equal. Teach your children about all of the different shapes of pools and wall heights that exist. Some pools are deepest in the middle; others are deep at one or both ends. Wall heights are extremely dangerous because a lot of children’s arms are not long enough to reach up and grab onto the wall when necessary.
Check for suction safety. Some pools have a hole where a vacuum gets attached, have a cap on the hole. A child swimming by could get hair or loose clothing caught in the suction, and there would be no way he or she would be able to escape or get a breath. Similarly, pool drains should never be a place to play around. There are too many different makes and models. Some are just not safe.
Look before you leap. Educate your children about diving in all bodies of water, not just pools.
Maureen Boucher has been teaching swimming and water safety for more than 25 years.
Swimming is the Only Sport that can Save Your Life!
Parents, I do understand that your children have other interests. However, some decisions should not be left up to the child. Unfortunately, this is one of them. Every child and adult should not only learn to swim but know how to swim extremely well. They need to know how to swim efficiently, back floating and treading water. Parents, do all other sports or activities save lives? I urge you to make this your top priority over Dance, Soccer, Football, Karate, Gymnastics, Baseball.etc. I find it interesting that when I teach adults, many have mentioned how they are so frustrated at the idea that their parents didn’t see the relevance of having them learn at a very young age. They feel that they have missed out on fun opportunities around the water. I urge you! Swimming should not be considered a summer activity. We are here year-round! Our location is bordering Oldsmar/Tampa, off of Hillsborough with an ENCLOSED, heated saltwater pool.