Water Security Marketing campaign Will Make You Put Your Telephone Down

Summer time will quickly be upon us, and with hotter climate and children ending up faculty, many people are heading to the pool or seaside. With that in thoughts, and Might being Nationwide Water Security Month, the YMCA of the USA has launched a new marketing campaign round water security—and it’s focused at dad and mom. 

The message is easy: “Telephones Down, Eyes Up.” It serves as such a significant reminder (and never simply round water security both).

What ‘Telephones Down, Eyes Up’ Is All About

Drowning is the main reason for dying for youngsters between the ages of 1 and 4, in keeping with the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention (CDC). And the Nationwide Drowning Prevention Alliance (NDPA) notes 50% of kids drown inside 25 yards of a guardian or different grownup, with distraction being a key issue.

One of many principal causes we take our eyes off kiddos in and across the water? Our telephones. “If that distraction occurs across the water, it could possibly have critical, even deadly penalties,” says Lindsay Mondick, the director of aquatics technique and high quality practices for YMCA.

The “Telephones Down, Eyes Up” marketing campaign, which additionally features a pledge, urges dad and mom and caregivers to place gadgets down and away whereas supervising children in and across the water. 

Moreover, the marketing campaign endorses designating an grownup as a “water watcher,” with eyes on children in and round water, fully distraction-free. Which means no alcohol, no chatting, and no telephones.

Mother and father might imagine they’ll rapidly reply to a textual content, create a purchasing listing, or take a look at a social submit whereas supervising children in water. However Mondick emphasizes that they should not. “Drowning is silent and might occur in as little as 30 seconds,” she says. “Drowning isn’t like it’s within the motion pictures.”

Which means it is unlikely you’ll hear somebody struggling within the water, Mondick says.

“It’s essential to actively watch the water,” she provides. “When our telephone is in entrance of us, we’re not seeing what’s occurring round us.”

That is additionally true of many actions that require parental supervision. “This message is a superb reminder for all points of life, not simply round water,” Mondick affirms. “It is all about main by instance and fostering a extra current and engaged setting.”

Different Necessary Water Security Reminders

Past placing down your telephone and actively supervising children, Mondick says different protecting measures round water to not neglect embody:

• Correct boundaries. “Limitations like fences and alarms are essential to assist stop drowning, particularly in younger kids, and could also be required by regulation in some states,” Mondick says.
• Water competency. Mondick recommends swim classes for teenagers as younger as 6 months of age, in addition to water security programs, which train little ones what to do in the event that they unexpectedly discover themselves in water.
• Sporting life jackets. “The YMCA of the USA recommends non-swimmers put on U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jackets which might be designed to maintain an individual’s head above water in the event that they go unconscious,” says Mondick. Swimmies or arm floaties give dad and mom a false sense of safety, and usually are not sufficient to stop drowning, she additional cautions, calling these “toys” and never a security system.
• Emergency preparation and planning. Mondick urges all dad and mom and caregivers to take First Help and CPR programs so they’re ready for an emergency.

“Train kids to ask permission earlier than getting into or nearing the water,” Mondick additional advises dad and mom. “This helps stop them from going into the water on their very own. Caregivers can reinforce this at residence, each time kids get within the bathtub.”

One other essential reminder about water security is that even kids who know the way to swim can drown. “Not letting your guard down round older children is a serious piece of water security that usually will get ignored,” Mondick shares. Accidents can nonetheless occur—particularly in massive teams as a result of others assume another person is watching. 

Contemplate too that teenagers usually take dangers and ignore security guidelines as a result of peer strain, so keeping track of them within the water continues to be essential. 

In the end, Mondick needs households to have enjoyable this summer time, however with security high of thoughts—and with their telephones down, eyes up.