URN.As one of the leading causes of death globally for children and young people aged 1–24, and the third leading cause of injury-related deaths overall, drowning tragically claims more than 236,000 lives each year.
Today, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a call for people around the world to “do one thing” to prevent drowning.
As one of the leading causes of death globally for children and young people aged 1–24, and the third leading cause of injury-related deaths overall, drowning tragically claims more than 236,000 lives each year.
More than 90% of drowning deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries, with children under the age of 5 being at the highest risk, the organization notes in its latest statement.
These deaths are frequently linked to daily, routine activities, such as bathing, collecting water for domestic use, traveling over water on boats or ferries, and fishing. The impacts of seasonal or extreme weather events – including monsoons – are also a frequent cause of drowning and these impacts are largely preventable through a number of interventions.
“Every year, around the world, hundreds of thousands of people drown. Most of these deaths are preventable through evidence-based, low-cost solutions,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “Today, cities around the world are lighting up their monuments in blue light as a call to action for each of us to do our part to prevent drowning. Let’s put a stop to drowning.”
According to Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg Philanthropies and WHO Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases and Injuries who is also quoted in the statement says they have developed tools to guide communities on prevention.
“WHO recommends 6 evidence-based measures to prevent drowning, including installing barriers controlling access to water; training bystanders in safe rescue and resuscitation; teaching school-aged children basic swimming and water safety skills; providing supervised daycare for children; setting and enforcing safe boating, shipping and ferry regulations; and improving flood risk management”, he says.
This year, the theme of World Drowning Prevention Day invites the global community to “do one thing” to prevent drowning. Examples of actions that can be taken include:
Individuals can share drowning prevention and water safety advice with their families friends and colleagues; sign up for swimming or water safety lessons; or support local drowning prevention charities and groups.
For governments, the global health body recommends development of new drowning prevention policies, strategies, legislation or investment; convening multi-sectoral roundtables or parliamentary discussions on drowning burden and solutions; and introducing or committing to supporting drowning prevention programming domestically or internationally.
