Infant Swimming Resource Applauds the Pool Safely Campaign for its 2011 Public Safety Messages

Pool Safely PSAs Urge Parents to Watch Children at All Times Around Pools and Spas This Summer and All Year Long

ORLANDO, FL – The summer swimming season is just around the corner, and Infant Swimming Resource (www.infantswim.com) supports the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC) release of the Pool Safely: Simple Steps Save Lives 2011 public service announcements (PSAs) highlighting various water safety steps that can be taken to save a life. In the first few months of 2011, there have been 37 drownings and 38 near-drowning incidents reported by the media across America. The PSAs are being released nationally today as part of CPSC’s ongoing campaign to urge parents and children to adopt as many safety steps as possible in and around pools and spas. The Pool Safely campaign is the federal government’s first-of-its-kind national public education effort to reduce child drownings and near-drownings in public swimming pools and spas.

As a Campaign Safety Partner, Infant Swimming Resource (ISR) is helping to deliver the campaign’s safety messages to the public by distributing materials, posting information online, holding events and incorporating the campaign into existing public safety outreach programs.

“We are proud to partner with the CPSC and its www.poolsafely.gov campaign. Sometimes, everything we do is not enough to keep a child from drowning. Even with alarms, door locks, pool fences and supervision, children can escape from protective care and find themselves in trouble,” says Harvey Barnett, Ph.D., founder of Infant Swimming Resource. “At ISR, we arm children with the skills to survive if they were to accidentally end up in the water alone.”

Working with the American Red Cross and the Y, CPSC produced television and radio PSAs to promote the Pool Safely campaign nationwide. The PSAs introduce four families and their stories about the simple steps that save lives: door alarms, knowledge of CPR, fencing around pools and spas and safety drain covers in pools and spas. The radio PSAs promote the importance of swimming lessons as a simple step that saves lives. Available to local television and radio stations in both English and Spanish, the English-language versions feature Ming-Na, the voice of Mulan in Disney animated films and star of the NBC drama “ER”, “The Joy Luck Club” and “Stargate Universe”. 

“As the summer swimming season quickly approaches, our message to parents and children is simple: stay safe in and around pools and spas by practicing as many safety steps as possible,” said Inez M. Tenenbaum, Chairman of the CPSC. “We encourage everyone to have fun in the water this summer, but we also remind parents and caregivers to stay close to children at all times, know water safety skills like CPR, and ensure anti-entrapment drain covers are installed in all pools and spas. Every drowning and near-drowning incident represents a family tragedy.” 

Since January 2010, the Pool Safely campaign has responded to over 600 media-reported drowning, near-drowning and entrapment incidents. Steps such as staying close to children at all times, learning water safety skills and having the appropriate equipment, can help families have a safer experience in and around pools and spas. You can learn more about the campaign’s water safety steps here. 

About CPSC
CPSC is an independent federal regulatory agency created by Congress in 1972 “to protect the public against unreasonable risks of injuries and deaths associated with consumer products.” The Pool Safely campaign is CPSC’s national information and education program associated with the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act (P&SS Act). The Pool Safely campaign is designed to raise public awareness about drowning and entrapment prevention, support industry compliance with safety standards, and improve safety at pools and spas. The Pool Safely campaign is proud to partner with leading organizations, including Abbey's Hope, American Red Cross, Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA), Association of Pool and Spa Professionals (APSP), Infant Swimming Resource, National Aquatic Safety Company (NASCO), National Drowning Prevention Alliance (NDPA), National Swimming Pool Foundation, Safe Kids USA, United States Swim School Association, USA Swimming Foundation, World Waterpark Association (WWA), and The YMCA of the USA. For more information, visit the website atwww.PoolSafely.gov and follow the campaign on Twitter @poolsafely.

About Infant Swimming Resource
Founded in 1966, Infant Swimming Resource (ISR), with it’s Self-Rescue™ program, is nationally recognized as the safest provider of survival swimming lessons for infants and young children. With a primary focus on safety and effectiveness, and as the world’s leading behavioral science based instruction program, ISR is the only choice for parents who are dedicated to their child’s safety, education and developmental needs. ISR’s worldwide network of highly qualified, certified Instructors has successfully delivered over 7 million safe lessons to infants and young children, which have resulted in our record of nearly 800 documented cases of a children utilizing ISR’s survival techniques to save their own lives. For more information on ISR, water and swim safety or to find an instructor in your area, please visit www.infantswim.com and follow ISR on Twitter @infantswim