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Black people and white people become really pronounced in swimming pool drownings involving kids; Black school-age children have higher drowning rates. These disparities are due to what we call social determinants of health, which include the history of involvement these families have with water activities, lack of access to swim lessons in their communities and lower swim ability rates. What is the right age to start swim lessons, and how long should children stay enrolled in them? Linda Quan: Swim lessons is a vague term and can be used in different ways with different goals at different ages. The American Academy of Pediatrics now recommends swim lessons can be started at age 1. And that’s really more an effort to have the child learn to be comfortable in the water, to enjoy the water and have a fun time with their parents. Later, when the child is comfortable and developmentally ready, they’ll start gaining physical psychomotor skills, which includes control of all four extremities and breathing. We know that kids can most efficiently put it all together at age 5. But it takes a long time to achieve swim competency. It’s not easy, and parents should be aware of where their kid is at in the process. We know many parents are taking their kids out of swim lessons before they acquire all the skills we’d like them to have. And so parents need to understand it’s not a matter of one session. It’s really multiple sessions, maybe even 20. You have to be in it for the long haul. What should people know about what it looks like or sounds like when someone is in trouble in the water? Linda Quan: If people look like they’re in trouble, assume they’re in trouble. The other thing is never assume that you’re going to hear someone who’s in trouble. Once you get into trouble, you are struggling to breathe, you are literally aware you are dying, and your only mission is to try to breathe. You can’t talk and you can’t shout. So do not expect to be able to hear someone drown. Instead, watch carefully and with constant attention. What should you do if someone is in trouble? Linda Quan: Unless you’ve taken a lifeguard class, you’re limited. Don’t go into the water. You should throw something at them that floats. Some beaches have those round ring buoys or even lifeguard rescue tubes, like you see on “Baywatch.” Use anything that floats – it could be a Styrofoam cooler, even sneakers or Crocs that float. If the person in trouble can grab onto it and just float a little bit, it might help them. You can also reach out with something long, like a tree branch or a shepherd hook from the pool area. So reach, throw and don’t go in unless you’ve been trained how because we see too many people dying during a rescue – usually fathers who are trying to save their child. Watch the full interview to hear more about water safety: www.sciline.org/public-health/water-safety