Edyta Ochalek

Role and Consequences of Lifeguards

Introduction
The main purpose of this essay is to give positive and negative aspects of
being a lifeguard. Firstly it will present co-existing parts of job
responsibilities. Secondly it will demonstrate a real life experience. Thirdly
it will give information on how to avoid such situations.

The lifeguards obligations, and therefore, responsibilities

are to support consistent observation of swimmers in the
facility, including securing safety for swimmers in a crisis.
Although lifeguard give crisis mind what's more medicine as
needed until the landing from claiming crisis restorative
administrations, display professional manifestation, administers
an helter skelter standard of client administration, performs
different support obligations as guided, should administer an
clean and safe office, prepares and administers proper
movement reports and performs incidental job-related
obligations Similarly as doled out. The Lifeguards knowledges,
abilities connects with skills such as controlled and done
effectively rescue action, be fit to swim 50m in less than
minute, be good with writing skills, skills of CPR and system of
rescue actions, be able to focus on routine spoken introductions
as written as well, excellent performance within social
environment such as main pool or leisure pool that includes
good solution solving problem when costumer is not happy with
something.
Unfortunately not every obligation is met in the role as
lifeguard. For example a young woman after taking a casualty
out of water, decided to stop doing CPR once she heard
breathing. Unfortunately it was not enough. Sophie Konderaks

heart stopped beating, so other lifeguards started to resuscitate

her. Miss Butter, who was not experienced in her job, left
Sophie alone on the cold, wet floor not knowing that she was
dying. Furthermore she did not check for a pulse or for
continued breathing, after one minute reanimation. Later on
paramedics came, but too late. They tried to do CPR on Sophie,
but this was unsuccessful as she had been left too long without
CPR. The mother of the young girl was very angry and
complaining, but no one could do anything. Sophie, swimmer
with a high ability to win, would not be able to live, because no
one knew that she suffered from rare heart disease. In that
case the young girl needed CPR non-stop. The young lifeguard
did describe what she had on training, which is recovery
position when a person stops breathing, however the heart of
Sophie did not move even when using a defibrillator. The
inquest asked the pool manager what lifeguards were taught
during their training of rescue in the water. After listening to
records, Catherine Mason (training supervisor) decided to
provide more guidelines for life-saving methods.
To save peoples lives there have been allocated zones for
lifeguards to supervise. Also important is for individuals to learn
how to swim and to stay away from crowded splashing places
or moving waves. Finally, swimmers should not drink alcohol.
One of the most important factors is to minimalize own risk
of drown to be able to save someones life. It happens
especially on open water side of sea. Usually on swimming pool
every lifeguard is given a zone (location to scan thru and look
after swimmers) so there is no need to be worry. Although there
are other deadly things that could occur there. Lack of ability
how to swim. In this case people organize swim classes and
get instructors to teach others how to swim. Using float isnt
always safe thats why many people are advice to go back to
shallow side of swimming pool or even to leisure pool.
Lifeguards think often, that better to educate someone and
send someone in safe place even someone is not happy, than
seeing family crying because someone died because of
drowning or being sent to court for not listen the safety
procedures. The next deadly side of swimming can be panic
attacks. They can happen any time when you not expecting.
Better to shout for help and lie on water and do bike legs move
if someone is able to. Next negative aspect of swimming can

happened if someone drank alcohol or took drugs. It can

lead to high self-steam which can be deadly, because someone
feeling great, in one moment can lose control over its body and
drink too much water and drown. The second most important
factor is rescue action. Knowing all about CPR allows
someone to save life or maintain for couple minutes heart
beats if that person suffers from heart disease. Chest
compression can be complicated, but when it is use by just 2
inches deep into chest and hands are placed in middle of breast
it is right done by someone who is not skilled at all. Having a
good scan skills and good eye catch on deangoures
situation can decrease death average percentage. People
attend to swimming pool can suffer from disease such as
epilepsy, allergies. There is one more situation that can happen
the less you expect. It is silent drowning. Person doesnt
shout for help. Its not waving. It appears as very shocking
view, but the person actually is dangerous for itself. Lifeguard is
rescuing person from behind so the person would not pull
her/his down under water. Once person feels hold he/she relax
and stop moving herself so chaotic. The other negative results
of leaving children unsupervised provoke too many situation.
For example one of them is unsecure floats for little ones.
Second is not watching toys. Children seeing toys in the water
think of still wanting to play. Parents leaving to wash
themselves and forgetting about toys think that children will go
with them but their attractiveness will be something else.
These toys that been left. The last fact about drowning is that
normal people can drown in shallow water and more likely
babies and toddlers. Parents often trust bathtub. They leave
baby and having fun trusting that their baby is fully safe. That
is not true. Baby can slipped upside down or fall into water.
Because there are so many children, no one will even notice
that the baby is under water. It is easy to think what is going to
happen next.
Conclusion
According to the text, the main problem occurs at a lack of
ability of the lifeguard under-pressure. This had very crucial
consequences, meaning that further employment as a lifeguard
was not possible. However the positives in the present day for

lifeguards, occurs in the knowledge of how to avoid these

unfortunate situations. In this way, many people can be saved.
Reference
Lifeguard Job Description. [Online] [Viewed 27 November 2014]. Available
from: http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?
q=cache:OTaHNipSrxUJ:people.clarkson.edu/~mgraham/LIFEGUARD
%2520JOB%2520DESCRIPTION.doc+&cd=7&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=pl
Dolan, A, 2010. Girl swimmer 16 died after wrongly trained lifeguard
stopped CPR thinking she had saved her life. [Online] The Daily Mail. 25
February 2010. Available from: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article1253701/Girl-swimmer-16-died-wrongly-trained-lifeguard-stopped-CPRthinking-saved-life.html
How to Prevent Drowning. [Online] [Viewed 27November 2014]. Available
from: http://www.wikihow.com/Prevent-Drowning