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Citation
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Meddings DR, Thamarangsi T, Nayar P, Passmore J, Abdelhamid R, Lukaszyk C, Sharma S, Khattar S, Gulhar I, Labous J, Burton A. World Health Organization. New Delhi: World Health Organization, Regional Office for South-East Asia, 2021. |
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Abstract
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Key messages:
■ In 2019, drowning was responsible for 70 034 deaths in the South-East Asia Region. This is the second highest number of deaths from across all regions of the World Health Organization (WHO). Over 33% of these deaths occurred among children under the age of 15 years.
■ Since the launch of the WHO's Global Report on Drowning: Preventing a leading killer in 2014, and the follow-up resource Preventing Drowning: an implementation guide in 2017, WHO has been working to scale up advocacy and action for drowning prevention in the South-East Asia Region.
■ This report presents the findings of the first assessment of drowning prevention in the South-East Asia Region. Ten countries have taken part, shared their knowledge and experience, and taken their first collective step towards addressing drowning
in this Region.
Burden of drowning in the South-East Asia Region
Between 2014 and 2018, eight of the Region's 11 countries reported no significant reduction in fatal drownings. The Region is vast, spanning 11 countries and encompassing a wide range of social and economic settings. As a result, exposure and interaction with water varies across the Region, giving rise to different drowning- related risk factors between countries. This introduces a wide range of challenges – and opportunities – for improving water safety in different parts of the Region.
Drowning is preventable Drowning can be prevented through the implementation of evidence-based, cost-effective approaches. The WHO Global Report on Drowning (2014) outlines four strategies and six interventions for drowning prevention. Strategies focus on developing strong national mechanisms to ensure a coordinated and effective approach to addressing drowning, while interventions promote community action. A comprehensive response to drowning requires a multisectoral approach that champions health beyond the health sector and draws on the knowledge, reach and capacity of other agencies and organizations. Effective strategies and interventions must respond to local needs, consider available resources and build on progress already made. Drowning prevention efforts must be underpinned by a gender, equity and human rights lens, to ensure no one is left behind. It is critical that drowning prevention programmes and interventions do not increase health inequities.
Drowning prevention in the South-East Asia Region: progress to date
Recent efforts to take action on drowning prevention in the South-East Asia Region, in line with WHO recommended guidance, include: swimming and water skills training in Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Sri Lanka; community-based child-day care (Anchals) in Bangladesh and India; strengthening multisectoral collaboration and governance in Sri Lanka; and improved information systems and awareness-raising campaigns in Thailand. However, more needs to be done to stem the significant death toll from drowning in the Region. Data collected through this report highlight:
■ Despite its preventability, drowning rarely makes it to the policy agenda of the countries of the Region. A lack of drowning data may leave decision- makers unaware of its true scale and impact and often also unsure as to which sector or agency should take responsibility for drowning prevention. This lack of awareness – and therefore commitment – can translate into an absence of national-level resources and technical capacity for a concerted approach to drowning prevention.
■ In the South-East Asia Region, data on drowning are available from diverse sources, ranging for example from: vital registration and death certificates in Myanmar and Thailand, Search and Rescue (SAR) data in Indonesia, tourism data sources in the Maldives, in-patient data in Bhutan, police and fire services' data in Sri Lanka and Timor-Leste, respectively. In Bangladesh, there is no routine vital registration system, and so the country's drowning data are based on a sample vital registration survey published in 2016. There is a need to strengthen monitoring and evaluation systems to gather a complete picture of who is drowning, under what circumstances, what initiatives and interventions are available and being undertaken to prevent drowning, and evidence as to whether or not these efforts are successful. National or subnational data from linked sources can be more effectively used for intervention planning and monitoring... |