Lifeguard Training

To become a lifeguard, a person needs to undergo an intense period of lifeguard training to ensure the safety of all those they are entrusted to protect. This may include training as an expert swimmer before actual formal training begins as this is perhaps the most demanding and most needed skill.

As a part of the lifeguard training process, a lifeguard will learn about the drowning chain. Five items that accurately list the causes of drowning: inability to cope, lack of education, lack of protection, lack of safety advice, and lack of supervision. It becomes the safety personnel’s job to make sure that on their beaches or at their pools these forces are worked against to ensure safety.

Often the first responders, lifeguard training will include some form of emergency medical skills. This can be full EMS training, or simple first aid depending upon the environment; a large beach next to a city, for example. While CPR for drowning victims is perhaps the most well-known skill, they also need to know how to handle cuts, burns, and other medical emergencies such as shock.

A large variety of specialized equipment is used to keep swimmers safe. Buoys and their use must be thoroughly known by all safety personnel as they are often one of the most commonly used and effective pieces of equipment. They must also learn to use specialized equipment necessary for their environment such as boats and patrol vehicles. They also undergo training in the system of flags used to assist each other and beachgoers on the conditions of the water.

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