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Abstract
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We are pleased to present the first outcomes and recommendations of the United States Lifeguard Standards Coalition (USLSC), a project sponsored by the American Red Cross, the United States Lifesaving Association (USLA), and the YMCA of the USA. The sponsors intend for these recommendations to have a positive influ- ence on the training of lifeguards and the practice of lifeguarding within their own organizations and, by freely sharing this research information and results, within other lifeguard training organizations as well. We have undergone this process maintaining the principle that best practice in lifeguarding should be based on the best and most scientific evidence available, and that once that evidence is identified, it should be relevant for and apply to all lifeguard training.
The Problem
As lifeguarding has evolved, lifeguard training methods and standards have been established primarily on the basis of experience and opinion. This can be a result of trial and error (or success), or of the recommendations of people who are considered to be experts. Just as experience and expertise vary in different organizations, so do methods and standards. In the case of some standards, the organizations promoting them may not have an institutional memory regarding the reason the standards came to exist. The standards may simply have been accepted on the basis of historical adherence: "We do it that way because we have always done it that way."
A review of the lifeguard training standards advanced by various organizations, including the American Red Cross, the USLA, the YMCA of the USA, and others, demonstrated that some practices differ within the field. The role of a lifeguard, regardless of where trained or employed, is to prevent death and injury. Using the best methods of training and standards of practice can therefore be expected to reduce the incidence of death and injury.
At the beginning of this project, it was assumed that some high quality scientific studies had been published within the scope of lifeguard training and standards that were not known to those developing lifeguard training programs. Another fundamental assumption was that by conducting a thorough review of the available scientific studies in related areas and by identifying areas of lifeguard training and standards that are lacking a scientific basis, recommendations could be made to help ensure that future training and standards are based on solid evidence. It was also assumed that in some areas where a scientific basis was lacking, "best practice" should be followed, but that best practices must first be determined...
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Language: en |