The Redwoods Group Insurance Program for YMCAs
Risk Management Alert

Topic: Aquatic Personal Protective Equipment

Lifesaving once was a wrestling match with Death. If one was skillful enough, strong enough, and lucky enough, both the victim and the lifeguard emerged to swim again. Times have changed. We now teach rescue techniques only with certain equipment... equipment that is essential both to protect the user and to save the victim. Equipment use is not optional. It is as much to ensure proper rescuer performance as it is to provide appropriate rescuer safety.

Three pieces of equipment are critical for both the rescuer and the victim. The buoy provides the rescuer with protection from aggression and prevention from sinking; it provides the victim with buoyancy that will not tire or let go. The mask protects the guard from ingesting vomit from a regurgitating victim; it protects the victim from abandonment by a mentally distraught or physically incapacitated rescuer. Gloves give the rescuer protection from potential blood borne pathogens; they give the victim some assurance that their rescuer will not panic and quit before the rescue is complete.

Lifeguards train and practice in closed environments, usually free of blood borne pathogens and actual drowning victims. It may be difficult to conceive of such a remote and unfamiliar danger as a blood borne pathogen, but the exposure, once experienced, is life changing and irrevocable. Similarly inconceivable is what reaction vomit in the face, or down the throat, will invoke.

Tube:
  • Must be in possession of lifeguard at all times, no exceptions!
    • Strap should be worn and gathered to prevent catching on the chair during exit
    • If the strap is not already in place, there is not time to put it on before a rescue
    • Guard will not take the time to get tube off wall or even off ground when needed
    • Jumping in without tube is very dangerous! A panicked child is unpredictable
  • Tube is a barrier for lifeguard in the event of an emergency
    • Prevents injury by keeping victim away from lifeguard... guard stays in control
    • Will keep 4 to 5 victims' heads above static water line
Mask & Gloves:
  • Should always be with the guard... e.g., in a fanny pack or attached to the tube, not in the office or first aid kit; Guards will not use them if they are not readily available
  • Virtually all drowning and near drowning cases have bodily fluids present, especially vomit, which will be expelled into your mouth without the use of a mask
Training:
  • Conduct training that focuses specifically on PPE utilization... be demanding
  • Create bodily fluids by using fake blood and Alka-Seltzer as froth from mouth
  • Regularly verify that your lifeguards are properly equipped and rescue-ready


Please call us at 800-463-8546 to discuss this or any other risk management concern, or visit our web site at www.redwoodsgroup.com to learn more about YMCA risk management related issues.

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© The Redwoods Group, 2002
Risk Management services are provided by The Redwoods Group to assist the management of insured organizations in fulfilling their responsibilities for the control of potential loss-producing situations involving their operations. The Redwoods Group does not warrant that all potential hazards or conditions have been identified or evaluated, or that they are safely controlled. The liability of The Redwoods Group is limited to the terms, conditions, and limits of the policies it has issued when conducting Risk Management Services.
released 04/08/02