5 Responsibilities of Pool Guards

Lifeguards are essential to maintaining safety in the pool. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), there has been an average of 3,536 fatal and unintentional drowning every year in the US alone. This number equates to about 10 deaths a day.

To avoid such a catastrophe striking your near and dear ones, it is important you swim only in a pool that has a lifeguard monitoring it. This way, the chances for drowning is greatly reduced.

On the other hand, if you're a lifeguard or planning to become one, it is important you understand the responsibilities that come with it.  Following the responsibilities and being vigilant is absolutely important as you can end up being responsible for someone's death, especially if it happened due to your negligence.

Here is a quick look at the responsibilities of pool guards.

Safety courses

All pool guards should have taken basic safety courses in order to become eligible to take up a job as a pool guard. This basic qualification could truly matter in life and death situations.

There are many organizations that offer these safety courses, so pool guards should have completed them.

The organizations that recruit pool guards should also ensure that they have completed the course genuinely and they are the right fit for this crucial job.

Strong and fit

The pool guard should be strong and fit. He or she should be able to jump in right away, have good swimming speeds and should be strong enough to pull people out of the water, if necessary. All this requires an extraordinary level of fitness and the pool guards should have them.

Communicate clearly

The pool guards should be proficient in the local language as well as in English to be able to clearly communicate about the possible dangers of entering the pool. The pool guard should even be ready to stop a person from entering the pool if it is dangerous, especially when there are lightning and thunder outside.

Alert and focus

The pool guard should remain alert all the time. This means no talking and no phones while on duty. The focus and concentration should only be on the pool and the people inside it. There has to be an extra focus during swimming classes for kids, or even when kids are swimming inside a pool. It is best that the guard counts the number of people who are in the pool all the time, so she or he can maintain the headcount.

Rules and responsibilities

Lastly, the guards should understand the rules and responsibilities that come with the job and should adhere to them strictly. Most organizations will have a set of rules pertaining to pool use, and these should be thoroughly understood and. implemented by the guards.

If you have a pool at home and can't afford a lifeguard, consider putting some kind of safety equipment such as those available at Pool Guard USA to protect your children, and maybe even yourself from accidental drowning.