A Research On The Development Of Overwater Lifesaving And A Comparative Analysis Of Overwater Lifeguard Training System At Home And Abroad

Based on documental data, investigations, mathematical statistics, comparative law and systems analysis, this paper discusses the development of overwater lifesaving at home and abroad, and our domestic problems in this respect. Aimed at providing theoretical and practical guides for our lifesaving work in the 21st century, the paper, through systems analysis, analyzes the factors, function, features and operation of overwater lifesaving system in our country, makes comparisons between domestic and foreign lifeguard training systems, and makes proposals conducive to our lifesaving development.As the research findings show, overwater lifesaving organizations were founded early in foreign countries, and there is currently a disequilibrium in lifesaving development among continents as well as countries; Lifesaving on water in our country falls into four different stages in terms of management; Most provincial and municipal administrations have made definite precriptions on lifesaving in management regulations of swimming pools,which effectively guarantees the development of lifesaving work; In our country, lifeguards, mainly from five departments, are in general well-educated, comparatively well-composed in age, with promotions depending on long working years, but not well-proportioned in sex; Standardized for only a short period, the national management of overwater lifesaving still has a lot of problems; By systems analysis, overwater lifesaving system, characterized by its clear objective, openness and dynamism, mainly includes five essential factors-swimmers, drowning men, lifeguards, lifesaving equipments and surroundings, with the function of safeguarding the life of swimmers, increasing the nation's awareness of lifesaving and developing the skills of lifeguards on water; Different from those of foreign countries, our lifeguard training system lacks certain supervising mechanism as well as variety in the types of lifeguards. England, one of the developed countries of overwater lifesaving, however, has set up a perfect lifeguard training system with a complete range of types and certificates; China, like the US and the UK, has attached great importance tofirst aid on spot, the cause of drowning and its precautions, but the writingprocedures, professional behavior and physical training for lifeguards are almost neglected in our country; Different points are emphasized in the lifeguard training and tests of our country and of the US and the UK, and there are similar as well as different emphasis put on our domestic training of lifeguards of all levels.Therefore, to promote the development of our lifesaving work, we should at present take some effective measures as followed: first, perfecting overwater lifeguard training system to meet the demands in the new century; second, improving lifesaving management system and building up a standard and orderly frame; third, increasing the investment in lifesaving on water to quicken its pace of development; fourth, widening the publicity for lifesaving to increase people's awareness; finally, conducting more theoretical research as well as practice to perfect the theory system of overwater lifesaving.