The Professional Lifeguard and Injury Prevention

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The Professional Lifeguard and Injury Prevention
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Decision Making Skills

• Decision making skills are not only important in
  lifeguarding, but in life as well.

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Decision Making Skills

• Use the FIND Model to help you to make decisions
• F Figure out the problem
• I Identify possible solutions
• N Name the pros and cons
• D Decide the best solution

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Decision Making Skills

• Work in groups of 3.
• Read the assigned problem
• Brainstorm together the steps of the FIND Model.
• One person record the ideas
• Present ideas to class
• Will count as a project grade

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Legal Considerations

• Duty to act
• - responsibility to help in an emergency
• Standard of care
• - minimum standard of care
• Negligence
• - Do only what youre trained to do!

• Good Samaritan laws
• Consent
• - Be sure to ask!
• Refusal of care
• - Cal 911 anyway
• Abandonment
• - Stay with them!
• Confidentiality
• - Dont disclose info
• Documentation
• - Write it down!

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The (Lifeguard) Team

• Teams may be trained and evaluated together
• Everyone working at the facility needs to know
  his/her role in an emergency
• Requires good communication and frequent
  in-service training

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Facility Management Promotes (Lifeguard)
Professionalism

• Management can support and help you by
• - Provide a policy/procedure manual
• - Conducting frequent in-service training
• - Provide opportunities for career development

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Preventing Injuries Patron Safety

• Lifeguards use three injury prevention
  strategies...
• 1. Communication with patrons
• 2. Facility safety checks
• 3. Patron surveillance

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Safety Checks

• Should be conducted before the facility opens,
  during daily operations, and at closing
• Correct any problems before opening
• If you cant
• 1. Use signs/ropes/cones to keep patrons away
  from hazard
• Document the problem
• NEVER perform safety checks while on duty
  lifeguarding

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Managements Responsibility

• Creating and reviewing EAPs and policies
• Addressing unsafe conditions
• Maintaining records on facility and employees
• Assisting after an emergency