WASHINGTON, CMC – The Pan American Well being Group (PAHO) says drowning stays a major and largely unaddressed public well being disaster within the Americas, with new analyses exhibiting that 77 per cent of nations lack nationwide drowning prevention methods.
PAHO mentioned that information collected throughout 26 international locations, together with the Caribbean, in 2023-2024, underscore the pressing want for motion to fight this preventable reason behind loss of life within the Area.
It mentioned in 2021 alone, greater than 17,000 folks died from drowning within the Americas, accounting for about six % of world drowning deaths.
Though the regional mortality charge is decrease than the worldwide common (1.6 vs. 3.8 per 100,000 folks), the report emphasizes that mortality is inordinately excessive among the many most weak teams, corresponding to youngsters underneath 5 years of age and adults over 70.
“Regardless of these challenges, progress is being made in a number of international locations. Over 70 % reported having early warning programs for disasters and search and rescue applications, and a rising quantity are conducting public consciousness campaigns on water security and little one supervision.
“Moreover, 92 per cent of nations indicated having laws in place for the security of passenger water transport, though with important variations in scope. These developments present the potential of multisectoral interventions to avoid wasting lives,” PAHO mentioned.
PAHO’s director of Noncommunicable Illnesses and Psychological Well being, Dr. Anselm Hennis, mentioned that drowning is a “preventable tragedy,” and that the brand new report offers “worthwhile data that permits us to grasp progress, establish gaps, and information lifesaving interventions.
“Multisectoral commitments and strengthened nationwide governance are important to advance drowning prevention in our Area, Hennis mentioned.
One of many essential findings of the report is the restricted nationwide governance mechanism for drowning prevention. Solely 11 international locations reported having a delegated authorities focus answerable for coordination, and solely 8% indicated that they’d government-led nationwide methods.
PAHO acknowledged that whereas varied sectors, together with well being, maritime security, police, catastrophe danger administration, lifesaving associations, and non-governmental organizations, are actively implementing drowning prevention measures, their efforts are considerably hampered by an absence of coordination.
It acknowledged that solely 27 % of nations reported having formal mechanisms to bridge the hole between authorities and non-government stakeholders, with the intention to promote the general effectiveness of their respective efforts.
Knowledge assortment additionally stays a major problem in understanding the scope of the issue. Solely 65 per cent of nations reported accumulating information on drowning deaths via their civil registration and very important statistics programs. PAHO mentioned this restricted monitoring capability hampers efforts to establish frequent danger elements and probably the most affected populations.
The evaluation additionally recognized important gaps within the Area’s regulatory frameworks. Solely 9 international locations have laws requiring pool fencing, a confirmed measure to cut back the danger of drowning amongst youngsters, and most don’t regulate personal swimming pools. As well as, solely eight % of nations have included swimming and water security instruction into their nationwide faculty curricula.
Though laws for water transport exist in most international locations, fewer than 10 % of the legal guidelines reviewed require passengers to put on life jackets, a vital measure to stop fatalities within the occasion of an accident. There are additionally regulatory gaps relating to the sale and consumption of alcohol close to our bodies of water.
PAHO mentioned that actions particularly geared toward stopping little one drownings stay restricted. Solely 23 % of nations promote bodily boundaries to limit younger youngsters’s entry to water, and simply 15 % supply supervised childcare applications.
On the international degree, the World Well being Group (WHO) estimates that large-scale implementation of two key interventions—preschool childcare providers and primary swimming instruction in faculties—might forestall as much as 774,000 drowning deaths and practically a million non-fatal circumstances by 2050.
