Swimming pool immersion accidents: An analysis from the Brisbane Drowning Study

Abstract

An analysis of a consecutive series of 66 swimming pool immersion accidents is presented; 74% of these occurred in in-ground swimming pools. The estimated accident rate per pool is fives times greater for in-ground pools compared with above-ground pools, where pools are inadequately fenced. Backyard swimming pools account for 74% of pool accidents. Motel and caravan park pools account for 90% of childhood immersion accidents, but the survival rate (17%) is very low. Fifty per cent of pool accidents occur in the family's own backyard pool, and 13.6% in a neighbour's pool; in the latter the survival rate is still low at only 33%. In only one of the 66 cases was there an adequate safety fence; in 76% of cases there was no fence or barrier whatsoever. Tables of swimming pool accidents by age, season, site, and outcome are presented.