Drowning Tucson PDF Download

Tucson, Arizona, is located sixty miles from the Mexican Border in the Sonoran Desert. With 300 sunny days per year, water related activities happen year round. The problem is that despite prevention and public education efforts, too many children have drowning incidents in the greater Tucson area. The purpose of this research is to identify and describe local ideals and beliefs related to child drowning prevention in the greater Tucson region. The descriptive research method was utilized in this study. The research questions are: a) What procedures do greater Tucson fire departments have in place to prevent child drownings? b) What beliefs do Rural Metro Fire Department line personnel and other fire personnel in the greater Tucson area have regarding prevention and mitigation activities related to child drownings? c) Can other community stakeholder's be utilized to assist in the mitigation of fixed factors that contribute to child drownings? Procedures utilized in the study include surveys of local fire service leaders, surveys of line personnel, and interviews with local prevention leaders and community stakeholders. The study shows that all respondents across the board believe that more can be done to limit the amount of drowning incidents in the greater Tucson area. Local public safety providers have programs in place but there is a lack of common language and collaboration by many of the agencies, although most agreed that a common approach is needed. The paper recommends more community collaboration, common language, sharing of best practices, and partnerships with local pool service providers who have the best opportunity to identify problems before a drowning occurs.