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Abstract
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Background Effective pool fencing legislation is a cornerstone of child drowning prevention, but can Australia improve further?
Aims/Objective/Purpose A) Estimate the prevalence of swimming pools per 100 households and children under 5 years per household swimming pool in Queensland.
B) Explore perceptions regarding effectiveness of updated pool fencing legislation in Queensland.
Methods Data from the 2011 Queensland Social Survey (QSS)--were used and additional questions asked were: 'How many children under the age of 5 years reside at your residence?'; 'Do you have a swimming pool at your residence?; 'How effective do you think that tightening the pool fencing legislation will be in reducing child drowning deaths?'
Results/Outcome There were 1265 respondents (response rate=32%). 26 per 100 households had a swimming pool. 11.4% of households with a pool also had children under 5 years. 57% of respondents believed tightening pool fencing legislation would be effective in reducing child drowning deaths (22% 'very effective' 35% 'effective'), 40% of respondents were either unsure or doubtful. Pool owners were significantly more likely to doubt the effectiveness of tightening the legislation. Perceptions of effectiveness of the legislation did not differ as a function of the presence of children under 5 years (p>0.5).
Significance/Contribution to the Field Between 1 July 2008 and 30 June 2011 there were fourteen children who drowned in home swimming pools in Queensland, a rate of 1.7 per 10 000 home swimming pools per annum. Pool owners were less likely to think that tightening the legislation would be effective.
This is an abstract of a presentation at Safety 2012, the 11th World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion, 1-4 October 2012, Michael Fowler Center, Wellington, New Zealand. Full text does not seem to be available for this abstract. |