OLDER Victorians from multicultural communities are being encouraged to stay safe around water.<\/p>\n
Life Saving Victoria (LSV) has launched a new campaign that provides people with vital information and simple steps to stay cool and water safe.<\/p>\n
In the past 10 years, 131 people aged 65 years and over have drowned in Victoria, making up about a quarter of the annual drowning deaths.<\/p>\n
Over a third (34 per cent) of these older adults were known to have a multicultural background.<\/p>\n
Fatal drownings in the region most often occur at beaches, in the ocean and in rivers or creeks.<\/p>\n
Common activities leading up to incidents include swimming, boating, fishing, riding watercraft, and walking or playing near the water’s edge.<\/p>\n
Underlying medical conditions and the side effects of medication have also been identified as contributing factors.<\/p>\n
Life Saving Victoria head of research, evaluation and insights, Dr Bernadette Matthews, said the new campaign was an important step forward in supporting the safety of entering the water.<\/p>\n
“Older Victorians from multicultural backgrounds face a range of challenges around water safety and extreme heat,: she said.<\/p>\n
“These include language barriers, access to safe aquatic environments and health conditions impacted by extreme heat,” Dr Matthews said.<\/p>\n
“This campaign is aimed at empowering older adults, especially people with multicultural backgrounds, to stay safe in the heat, especially around water.”<\/p>\n
Fellow researcher Dr Hannah Graefe said drowning is a major public health concern in Victoria that claims an average of 48 lives\u00a0a year.<\/p>\n
“There is a 75 per cent likelihood of a drowning occurring in any given year on the Surf Coast,” she said.<\/p>\n
“In the Geelong region people aged 65 and older comprise 26 per cent of fatal drownings over the past decade, though made up only 20\u00a0per cent of the population in\u00a0this region.<\/p>\n
“This new campaign from Life Saving Victoria encourages Victorians aged 65+ to be mindful of water safety, particularly on those hotter days, and to heed the warnings of experts to stay hydrated, know your limits, be prepared and plan ahead for visiting waterways.”<\/p>\n
Public pools, she said, are the safest place to swim.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
OLDER Victorians from multicultural communities are being encouraged to stay safe around water. Life Saving Victoria (LSV) has launched a new campaign that provides people with vital information and simple steps to stay cool and water safe. In the past 10 years, 131 people aged 65 years and over have drowned in Victoria, making up […]<\/p>\n