water safetySummer is a time when people want to get outdoors, enjoy the warm weather and the many activities that go along with it. Unfortunately, summer is also considered trauma season for these very reasons as well – an increased number of people outdoors participating in potentially dangerous activities.

But we want everyone to be safe and have a trauma free summer season so take a moment to check out these water safety tips.

Drownings are the leading cause of injury death for young children ages 1 to 4, and three children die every day as a result of drowning.

  • Always supervise children when in or around water. A responsible adult should constantly watch young children.
  • Teach kids to swim. Formal swimming lessons can protect young children from drowning.
  • Learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Your CPR skills could save someone’s life.
  • Install a four-sided fence around home pools.
  • Children should wear a properly fitted life jacket every time they are in the water until they can swim.
  • Drowning is silent especially in infants and children (their lungs are so small it takes very little water to fill them).

When boating, keep these helpful hints in mind:

  • Wear slip resistant shoes when on a boat.
  • Avoid the back of the boat where the motor propeller is.
  • Get off the water when there is a storm approaching even if it is not lightning.
  • Avoid alcohol, and remember to stay hydrated when experiencing prolonged exposure to the heat and sun.
  • Stay seated while the boat is moving.

As the leading teaching hospital in the region, UofL Hospital is committed to educating our community. To learn more visit UofLHospital.org.

 

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Theresa Baker

Theresa Baker, RN, BSN, is the trauma outreach and prevention coordinator for UofL Hospital, where she has worked for more than 23 years. Theresa has been a nurse since 1976, specializing in pediatric and adult burns/trauma. She obtained her bachelor’s degree from Indiana University Southeast. She is a certified burn nurse, Trauma Nursing Core Course director, instructor and faculty, Advanced Trauma Life Support course coordinator, Advanced Burn Life Support instructor, director and faculty, Rural Trauma Team Development course coordinator. She is a member of the Emergency Nurses Association, American Burn Association and Society of Trauma Nurses. Along with her education courses, she has received awards for the injury prevention program called Straight Talk, a juvenile intervention arson program. Some of her ongoing events include the Kentucky Statewide Trauma and Emergency Medicine Symposium, Annual EMS Conference, Rural Healthcare Training Conferences and multiple trauma education lectures throughout Kentucky, Southern Indiana and nationally.

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