Citation

Barnsley PD, Peden AE. Safety (Basel) 2018; 4(4): e42.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, MDPI: Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute)

DOI

10.3390/safety4040042

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Australia's celebration of its public holidays often involves aquatic recreation, frequently mixed with consumption of alcohol, both of which are risk factors for drowning. This study examines how the demographics and circumstances of public holiday drownings compare to the average day drownings. A total population survey (1 July 2002 to 30 June 2017) of unintentional fatal drownings in Australia were extracted from the Royal Life Saving National Fatal Drowning Database. Date of drowning and state/territory of residence were used to determine if the drowning occurred on a public holiday in the person's place of residence. 4175 persons drowned during the study period. There was a statistically significant difference between the incidence of fatal drowning on public holidays and the other days, with fatal drowning 1.73 times more likely to occur on public holidays (CI: 1.57-1.89). The increased risk of drowning on public holidays should inform the timing and the content of drowning prevention campaigns and strategies.

Language: en

Keywords

alcohol; burden of disease; drowning; injury prevention; risk factors