According to the Center for Disease Control, an average of ten people die every day in the United States from drowning. This makes drowning the fifth leading cause of unintentional death in the U.S. This is a startling statistic, but luckily there are multiple large organizations dedicated to preventing drowning in the United States. However, when we look at the bigger picture, and examine drownin
g from a worldwide perspective, we see that drowning is a much bigger problem in low-middle income countries around the world. Statistics from the World Health Organization show us that drowning is the third leading cause of unintentional death worldwide, and 96% of fatal drownings occur in low-middle income countries. For example, in Bangladesh an estimated 46 children die every day from drowning. Something even more startling about these statistics is that the majority of drowning deaths in these low-middle income areas go unreported, meaning this problem is likely much more substantial than the data shows. The United States is lucky to have organizations such as the American Red Cross, Swim America, and USA Swimming to help prevent drowning here at home, but who is helping these low-middle income countries? Through our research we discovered that the majority of areas most affected by drowning have little, if any, drowning prevention programs. We decided it was time for a change, so we developed Aqua Motion International, an organization dedicated to preventing drowning in low-middle income areas around the world. Aqua Motion International (AMI) provides water safety education, drowning rescue education, and on-location swim lessons to children in the areas around the world most affected by drowning. The most innovative part about AMI is that the children in these areas have access to free on-site swim lessons. Using AMI’s effective 4-step lesson plan children learn the essential skills they need to be safe in water. The 4-step plan teaches children the valuable skills of holding their breath, floating, treading water, and safety stroke efficiently in a short time frame.
