12
Each year, the American RedCross teaches more than 2 million children and adults toswim thanks to people just likeyou. Individuals 16 and oldercan become certified to teachthe Red Cross Swimming andWater Safety program withonly 30 hours of training. Plus,Red Cross certification isrecognized nationwide, so youcan work wherever you go.
Build Skills to Last a Lifetime
Building leadership, communication and teaching skills willnot only help you in the summer job market, but also for therest of your life. Through video and hands-on skill building,the course features clearly described and applied teachingstrategies. The Red Cross provides you with the highestquality training and the best tools available so you canbecome a top-notch instructor.
Fun Jobs that Help Save Lives
As a Water Safety Instructor, you will teach people of allages and skill levels how to be safe in, on and around thewater. Your certification will allow you to teach— • Learn-to-Swim (Levels 1–6).• Parent and Child Aquatics.• A variety of water safety presentations.
Become a Water Safety Instructor Today
For more information on becoming a Water Safety Instructorin your community, contact your local American Red Crosschapter, call (800) RED-CROSS or visit www.redcross.org.
Expand Your Employment Skills with Training fromthe American Red Cross
Updated!
LifeguardingThe following organizations provided review of the materials and support for American Red Cross Lifeguarding:
Copyright © 2007 by The American National Red Cross
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a re-trieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission from American RedCross National Headquarters, Preparedness and Health and Safety Services.
Content reflects the American Red Cross 2005 Guidelines for Emergency Care andEducation and the 2005 Guidelines for First Aid.
American Red Cross certificates may be issued upon successful completion of atraining program, which uses this manual as an integral part of a course. By itself,the material in this manual does not constitute comprehensive Red Cross training.In order to issue Red Cross certificates, your instructor must be authorized by theAmerican Red Cross, and must follow prescribed policies and procedures. Makecertain that you have attended a course authorized by the Red Cross. Contact yourlocal American Red Cross chapter (www.redcross.org) for more information.
The emergency care procedures outlined in this manual reflect the standard ofknowledge and accepted emergency practices in the United States at the time thismanual was published. It is the reader’s responsibility to stay informed of changesin the emergency care procedures.
The Girl Scout service mark is a registered trademark of Girl Scouts of the USA.
Printed by Banta Book Group.
StayWell780 Township Line Rd.Yardley, PA 19067
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Lifeguarding. — 3rd ed.p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.ISBN 1-58480-320-71. Lifesaving. 2. Lifeguards—Training of. I. American Red Cross.
GV838.7.L54 2007797.2�10289—dc22
2006031662
ISBN-10 1-58480-320-7ISBN-13 978-1-58480-320-1
10/ 9 8 7 6 5
Acknowledgments iii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
American Red Cross Lifeguarding was developed through the dedication of both employees and volunteers. Their commitment to excellence made this manual possible.
The American Red Cross team forthis edition included—
Pat BoniferDirectorResearch and Product Development
Jennifer DeibertProject ManagerResearch and Product Development
Mike EspinoProject Manager, Aquatics Technical
DevelopmentResearch and Product Development
Kelly FischbeinAssociate, EvaluationResearch and Product Development
Connie HarveyManagerResearch and Product Development
John HendricksonSenior AssociateChapter Business Development and
Sales Support
Tom HeneghanSenior AssociateProgram Administration and Support
Steve LynchSenior AssociateBusiness Planning
Marc MaddenSenior AssociateResearch and Product Development
Barbara MuthManager, EvaluationResearch and Product Development
Lindsay Oaksmith, CHESSenior Associate, Aquatics Technical
DevelopmentResearch and Product Development
Greta PetrillaManagerCommunication and Marketing
Mary Kate MartelonVolunteer InternResearch and Product Development
Betty J. ButlerAdministrative AssistantResearch and Product Development
Rhadames AvilaAdministrative AssistantResearch and Product Development
Guidance and support was providedby the following individuals—
Scott Conner Vice President Preparedness and Health and Safety
Services
Don Vardell National Chair Preparedness and Health and Safety
Services
The StayWell team for this editionincluded—
Nancy MonahanSenior Vice President
Bill WinnebergerSenior Director of Manufacturing
Paula BattExecutive DirectorSales and Business Development
Reed KlanderudExecutive DirectorMarketing and New Product
Development
Shannon BatesManaging Editor
Lorraine P. CoffeySenior Developmental Editor
Bryan ElrodSenior Developmental Editor
Kate PlourdeMarketing Manager
Stephanie WeidelSenior Production Editor
The following members of the Amer-ican Red Cross Advisory Council onFirst Aid and Safety (ACFAS) alsoprovided guidance and review:
David Markenson, MD, FAAP, EMT-PChair, American Red Cross Advisory
Council on First Aid and Safety(ACFAS)
Chief, Pediatric Emergency MedicineMaria Fareri Children’s HospitalWestchester Medical CenterValhalla, New York
Roy R. FieldingMember, American Red Cross
Lifeguarding Advisory GroupUniversity of North Carolina—
Charlotte, Dept. of KinesiologyDirector of AquaticsCharlotte, North Carolina
Francesco A. Pia, PhDMember, American Red Cross
Lifeguarding Advisory GroupWater Safety Films, Inc.President, Pia Consulting ServicesLarchmont, New York
M. Kathryn ScottDirector, Physical EducationUniversity of CaliforniaBerkeley, California
The Lifeguarding Advisory Group forthis edition included—
Joyce A. BathkeAmerican Red CrossSt. Louis Area ChapterDirector, Health and SafetySt. Louis, Missouri
David W. Bell, PhDNational Aquatic CommitteeNational Health and Safety
CommitteeBoy Scouts of AmericaPonca City, Oklahoma
Tina M. DittmarCity of Laguna Niguel, Parks &
Recreation AquaticsAquatics SupervisorLaguna Niguel, California
Dan L. JonesCity of Newport News—Aquatics and
Beach SafetyDirector, Aquatics and Beach SafetyNewport News, Virginia
John A. KaufmannUnited States NavySupervisor Training SpecialistPensacola, Florida
Bryan J. NadeauBusch Entertainment CorporationAdmission Systems ManagerSt. Louis, Missouri
Jorge L. Olaves, EdSFlorida A&M University—Aquatic
CenterAquatic Director/CoordinatorTallahassee, Florida
The following organizations pro-vided external review:
American Camp Association—EducationCatherine M. SchederDirector, Educational PartnershipsMartinsville City, Indiana
Boy Scouts of America—NationalCouncilBill SteeleDirectorLeadership Support ServiceIrving, Texas
Boys & Girls Clubs of AmericaRachel C. FalgoutDirector, Teen ServicesAtlanta, Georgia
Girl Scouts of the U.S.A.Kathleen M. CullinanProgram Consultant, Safety-Wise
LeadNew York, New York
Jewish Community CentersAssociationJoyAnn BrandAssociate Director of Professional
DevelopmentNew York, New York
National Recreation & ParkAssociationSharon L. MannionAquatic ManagerAshburn, Virginia
US Navy—CNIC—MWR—MissionEssential BranchJohn K. PowellHead, Mission Essential BranchMillington, Tennessee
USA SwimmingSue Pitt AndersonResource DevelopmentColorado Springs, Colorado
The following individuals providedexternal review:
Gerald DeMers, PhDChair, Kinesiology DepartmentCalifornia Polytechnic State
UniversitySan Luis Obispo, California
Jennifer Espino-SmithSupervisory Recreation Specialist30th Services DivisionVandenberg AFB, California
Jim O’ConnorAquatics CoordinatorMiami-Dade Park and RecreationMiami, Florida
The following individuals providedexternal review for American RedCross and StayWell:
Susan T. Dempf, PhDAssociate Professor, The Sage CollegesTroy, New York
Terri Eudy, MAHealth and Safety Course
Instructor/TrainerDepartment of Campus RecreationOakland UniversityRochester, Michigan
Bonnie GriswoldAquatics SupervisorCity of MadisonMadison, Wisconsin
The American Red Cross and Stay-Well thank Casey Berg, Rick Brady,Vincent Knaus, Jessica Silver and LynnWhittemore for their contributions tothe development of this manual.
iv Acknowledgments
Photo Locations
A.D. Barnes PoolMetro-Dade Parks and RecreationMiami, Florida
Anacostia PoolDistrict of ColumbiaDepartment of Parks and RecreationWashington, DC
Army Navy Country ClubArlington, Virginia
Camp OnekaWayne, Pennsylvania
Camp SaffranBroad Creek Memorial Scout
ReservationBaltimore Area Council, Boy Scouts
of AmericaWhiteford, Maryland
Carpinteria Community PoolCity of Carpinteria Parks and Recreation Carpinteria, California
Crown Valley Community PoolCity of Laguna NiguelParks & RecreationLaguna Niguel, California
Cypress LakesLee County Parks and RecreationFort Myers, Florida
Gunpowder Falls State ParkHammerman AreaChase, Maryland
Huntington Park BeachCity of Newport NewsDepartment of Parks, Recreation &
TourismNewport News, Virginia
Larry and Penny Thompson ParkMetro-Dade Parks and RecreationMiami, Florida
Los Baños PoolCity of Santa BarbaraParks & RecreationSanta Barbara, California
Magruder Swimming PoolCity of Newport NewsDepartment of Parks, Recreation &
TourismNewport News, Virginia
Matheson Hammock ParkMetro-Dade Parks and RecreationMiami, Florida
Midtown Aquatic CenterCity of Newport NewsDepartment of Parks, Recreation &
TourismNewport News, Virginia
North Shore PoolReston Association Reston, Virginia
Paul Nelson Aquatic CenterCity of Santa MariaRecreation & Parks DepartmentSanta Maria, California
Turkey Thicket PoolDistrict of ColumbiaDepartment of Parks and RecreationWashington, DC
University of MarylandCampus Recreation Center
NatatoriumCollege Park, Maryland
Vandenberg AFB Family AquaticCenter30th Services DivisionVandenberg AFB, California
Ventura Aquatic CenterCity of VenturaCommunity Recreation DivisionVentura, California
Walt Disney WorldOrlando, Florida
Wet ‘n WildOrlando, Florida
Wild Rivers WaterparkIrvine, California
William Woollett Jr. Aquatics CenterCity of IrvineCommunity ServicesIrvine, California
Acknowledgments v
vi Preface
PREFACE
This manual is for lifeguards, whom the American Red Cross profoundly thanks for theircommitment to safeguarding the lives of children and adults who enjoy aquatic facilities.As the number of community pools and waterparks grows nationwide, participation inaquatic activities is also growing. With this growth comes the need for even more life-guards.
To protect this growing number of participants, lifeguards must receive proper and ef-fective training. Lifeguards also need to maintain their skills to ensure their ability towork effectively with others as a part of a lifeguard team. Participation in frequent andongoing training is essential.
Lifeguards must be able to recognize hazardous situations to prevent injury. They must beable to supervise swimmers, minimize dangers, educate facility users about safety, en-force rules and regulations, provide assistance and perform rescues.
Being a lifeguard carries a significant professional responsibility, but lifeguarding also of-fers opportunities for personal growth. Experience as a lifeguard can help one developprofessional and leadership skills that will last a lifetime—through college, career andfamily.
There are a half million American Red Cross-trained lifeguards working at swimming pools,waterparks and waterfronts across our country. Every day on the job, these lifeguards arepart of a critical force for good—ensuring the safety of patrons and protecting lives.
Brief Table of Contents vii
BRIEF TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1 The Professional Lifeguard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1Chapter 2 Injury Prevention and Facility Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11Chapter 3 Patron Surveillance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27Chapter 4 Emergency Preparation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49Chapter 5 Rescue Skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57Chapter 6 Before Providing Care and Victim Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85Chapter 7 Breathing Emergencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101Chapter 8 Cardiac Emergencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123Chapter 9 First Aid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141Chapter 10 Caring for Head, Neck and Back Injuries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159Chapter 11 The Benefits of Lifeguarding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
viii Table of Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 4Emergency Preparation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49Responding to Emergencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50Emergency Action Plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50After an Emergency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53Putting it All Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Chapter 5Rescue Skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57General Procedures for a Water Emergency . . . . . 58Rescue Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58Entries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59Rescue Approaches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62Assists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62Rescues at or Near the Surface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64Rescuing a Submerged Victim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66Escapes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68Multiple-Victim Rescue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70Removal from Water . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71Additional Rescue Skills at Waterfronts . . . . . . . . . 74Special Situations at Waterfronts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78Putting it All Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Chapter 6Before Providing Care and Victim Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85Before Providing Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86Bloodborne Pathogens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86How Pathogens Spread . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87Preventing the Spread of Bloodborne
Pathogens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Chapter 1The Professional Lifeguard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1Characteristics of a Professional Lifeguard . . . . . . . 2Responsibilities of a Professional Lifeguard . . . . . . 3Lifeguard Work Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Decision Making . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Legal Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6The Lifeguard Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8How Facility Management Promotes
Lifeguard Professionalism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Maintaining Lifeguarding Knowledge and Skills . . . 9Putting it All Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Chapter 2Injury Prevention and Facility Safety . . . . . . 11Preventing Injuries: Patron Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Communication with Patrons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Enforce Rules and Regulations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Safety Checks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Weather Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21Management and Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Putting it All Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Chapter 3Patron Surveillance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27Effective Surveillance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28Effective Scanning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31Special Considerations for Patron Surveillance . . 38Putting it All Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Table of Contents ix
If Exposed to Infectious Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94General Procedures for Injury or Sudden
Illness on Land . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94Emergency Moves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98Putting it All Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Chapter 7Breathing Emergencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101Breathing Emergencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102Rescue Breathing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104Airway Obstruction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111Emergency Oxygen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116Oxygen Delivery Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118Oxygen Administration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119Putting it All Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Chapter 8Cardiac Emergencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123Cardiac Chain of Survival . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124CPR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126AEDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133Putting it All Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Chapter 9 First Aid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141Secondary Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142Sudden Illness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145Bites and Stings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147Poisoning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148Wounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149Injuries to Muscles, Bones and Joints . . . . . . . . . 155Heat- and Cold-Related Emergencies . . . . . . . . . . 157Putting it All Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Chapter 10Caring for Head, Neck and Back Injuries . . 159Causes of Head, Neck and Back Injuries . . . . . . . 160Caring for Head, Neck and Back Injuries . . . . . . . 160Caring for Head, Neck and Back Injuries
in the Water . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160Head, Neck and Back Injuries on Land . . . . . . . . 177Putting it All Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
Chapter 11The Benefits of Lifeguarding . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181Personal Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182Professional Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182Putting it All Together . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
