Drowning Prevention Coalition of Arizona

CONTACT: Lori Schmidt, DPCA Immediate Past President, Mobile 480-272-1710, lschmidt@scottsdaleaz.gov IT’S A DROWNING (Not Dry, near, secondary or delayed) DPCA to address Drowning Terminology Misnomers Before 2002, there were 33 different published definitions of drowning and near drowning. Some of these definitions and terms were confusing and made tracking of drowning patients very difficult. For example, if someone was rescued from the water and taken to the hospital as a “near drowning” and they died a few days later as a result of complications, cause of death may be listed as “respiratory failure” and not as drowning. From a medical and public health standpoint, the initial event that caused death was drowning, but the fatality was never listed as being caused by drowning. At Thursday’s Drowning Prevention Coalition of Arizona general meeting, Dr. Andrew Schmidt from Lifeguards Without Borders, will discuss the misnomers and attempt to ge...

CONTACT: Jay Arthur, DPCA Vice President  Mobile 602-518-6008 DROWNING PREVENTION OFFICIALS: “GETTING TO THE POINTE OF WATER SAFETY” Free Family Friendly Event Highlights Annual Issue The Drowning Prevention Coalition of Arizona, Phoenix Fire Department, and water safety advocates join together for a public family-friendly event designed to educate the community about the importance of safety around water on Saturday, May 12. The “Getting to the Pointe of Water Safety” annual event will again be hosted at The Hole-In-The-Wall River Ranch by Pointe Hilton Squaw Peak Resort. This free event is held annually to bring the community together at Pointe Hilton Squaw Peak Resort for a fun opportunity to remind families the importance of water safety and is a one-stop-shop for education and information. Thanks to a grant from the Association of Pool and Spa Professionals, DPCA will be giving out lifejackets and $250 of free swim lessons....

MEDIA CONTACT: Lori Schmidt, Mobile 480-272-1710 SAFETY ADVOCATES REMIND RESIDENTS, VISITORS: DROWNING DOESN’T HAVE A SEASON The holidays may be over, but in the Valley of the Sun, event season has just begun.  Sporting events, car auctions and the annual crown jewel, Waste Management Phoenix Open has visitors and residents alike distracted.  “Although we see our incident numbers rise as the weather gets warmer, most pools remain filled all year long,” said Melissa Sutton, president of the Drowning Prevention Coalition of Arizona.  “And to visitors, our temperatures in January are a dream. This brings a lot of people to the area who aren’t used to having pools in the backyard.  That lack of awareness can be devastating if a child finds access to water.” Sutton also recognizes that day-to-day life can be distracting enough, leading to tragedy. “We unfortunately saw that this weekend,” she said. A 3-year-old drowned Sunday...

Pool & Spa Safety Checklist Program The Drowning Prevention Coalition of Arizona is partnering with the National Injury Prevention Council and Colin’s Hope to offer the Pool & Spa Safety Checklist Program . With this checklist, our goals are to reduce injuries and drownings in backyard pools and spas. We know that if we can reach pool and spa owners in their backyards, we will reduce injuries and fatalities. With a few minutes of one-on-one safety awareness and education on Layers of Protection, we can help save lives from drowning. Each year drowning kills approximately 830 children in the United States. Plus, an additional 3,600 non-fatal child drowning incidents send children to the hospital each year. Over half of these drowning incidents occur in residential pools and spas. This program is designed to provide the education necessary for pool and spa owners to make decisions about their backyard environment. Even though we cannot eliminate all risk, poo...

Life Jacket Series: Part 1 - Devices Throughout the world, one million children die of unintentional injuries each year. Millions of other children are injured in ways that can affect them for a lifetime. The good news is that these injuries are preventable. There are solutions that are proven to work especially when it comes to keeping children safe around water. Research shows survivors of boating accidents were t wo times more likely to survive when wearing  a life jacket. In addition, there is evidence to show that simple act of wearing a life jacket for the first time improves  one's performance on donning a second life jacket  - which means using an object to reduce drowning is teachable.  The Dangerous Waters Report by Safe Kids Worldwide confirms what most professionals know to be true that the group with the highest risk of drowning are children aged one through four years. Safe Kids Maricopa County and Phoenix Children's Hospital have embarked o...