Instructors - Do you have your order in for the new ARC Swimming and Water Safety materials (r.09)

Pre-sales begin 23 December 2008 for chapters to pre-order their new materials from Staywell.

Only Chapters can pre-order these materials from 23 December 2008 to 25 January 2009.

Shipping of chapter ordered materials will begin on 27 February 2009 or as soon as the program releases.

ARC instructors can begin pre-ordering materials directly from Staywell on 26 January 2009. Instructor's registered on "Instructor's Corner" or "ShopStaywell.com" will receive an email to alert them that the program materials are available for pre-sale.

Instructors should check "Instructor's Corner" for program and instructor updates .

Aquatic Providers - Are you prepared for the VGB Safety Act?

The Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act (VGBSA) is scheduled for enforcement on 19 December 2008. If you are a pool operator, you need to understand this legislation.

The VGBSA was enacted to help ensure the safety of the public who use pools and spas. The legislation requires that public pools and spas be equipped with certified drain covers or grates that meet the required ASME/ANSI A112.19.8 standards and safety measures to prevent entrapment and evisceration.

In summary, the act states that public pools which are currently in operation must be in compliance with the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act by December 19, 2008. Pools which operate on a seasonal basis and are not currently in operation have until their first day of operation for the coming season to be in compliance with the Virginia Graeme Baker Safety Act (VGBSA).

Because of some unexpected circumstances which have affected the ability of many facilities to be able to comply with the VGBSA by December 19, many aquatic professionals have been and are communicating with their respective members of Congress and the Consumer Product Safety Commission to request a delay in the effective date of the legislation. Further information regarding this may be obtained through your state park and recreation office or from the National Park and Recreation Association (www.nrpa.org).

For more information on the Virginia Graeme Baker Safety Act, please see the following documents from the Consumer Product Safety Commission or visit the following websites –

Consumer Product Safety Commission: www.cpsc.gov/whatsnew.html
Aquatics International: http://www.aquaticsintl.com/poolsafety/08safety_faq.html
National Swimming Pool Foundation: www.nspf.org
National Recreation and Park Association: www.nrpa.org
NBC’s Today Show “Is Your Local Pool Safe?” segment: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/28251182#28251182

If you are a Water Safety Instructor or Lifeguard Instructor, then check out this information for the safety of your young patrons and to ensure that your facility is in compliance with this new requirement.

Water Safety and Lifeguard Instructors need to review the Implementation Guide (r.09)

The expected release date for the new revision of the Swimming and Water Safety program is 27 Feb 09. Instructors should review the the Swimming and Water Safety Implementation Guide to learn about program highlights, new materials, ordering information, and instructor update requirements:

Contact the Preparedness and Health and Safety Services Program Coordinator at your local chapter (Southern Arizona Chapter) for additional information.

CPR/AED for the Professional Rescuer Update

The Preparedness department and Health and Safety Services have conducted a review of the validity length of the CPR/AED for the Professional Rescuer (CPR/AED-PR) certification based on requests from American Red Cross (ARC) chapters. All CPR certifications were considered and it was determined that the change to a two-year CPR certificate validity period would be appropriate for professional rescuers other than lifeguards.

Professional rescuers other than lifeguards are in a position to use CPR/AED skills on a regulare basis due to job responsibilities. The American Red Cross Advisory Counceil on First Aid, Aquatics, Safety and Preparedness (ACFASP) review of the scientific literature indicates formal retraining can be changed to a biennial occurrence for some rescuers. The review has indicated that skill and knowledge retention can be accomplished through a variety of methods including skill performance, retraining and skills refreshers.

Lifeguards are excluded from the two-year certification due to the predominantly seasonal nature of their work. In addition, the American Red Cross Aquatic Examiner Service supports an annual training standard. Therefore the certificate issued for lifeguards will be valid for one year.

The American Red Cross has announced the following changes to the certificates and validity periods for CPR/AED-PR course:

• Certificates issued in a CPR/AED-PR course will now be valid for two-years (except for lifeguards). The certificate issued for this course will have a new title:

CPR/AED for the Professional Rescuer and Healthcare Provider

• Certificates issued in a CPR/AED-PR course for lifeguards will be valid for one year. The certificate issued to the lifeguards will have the new title:

CPR/AED for Lifeguards

This change may be implemented immediately by ARC chapters and ARC - Authorized Providers (AP); however, this change will take effect on 1 Jan 2009.

Following both scientific literature and OSHA recommendatoins, the ARC continues to strongly encourage all professional rescuers to retrain in CPR/AED annually and to refresh their skills at least every six months. The maintenance of skills and knowledge is achieved by a combination of course work including retraining, skills refreshers and application of these skills.

If you have questions, contact me or the local chapter of the American Red Cross.

CEU's Available for Approved Red Cross Training Courses and Presentations

The Red Cross has been approved by the International Association of Continuing Education and Training (ACET) to offer continuing education units (CEUs) for approved Red Cross training courses and presentations.

Effective November 3, training course participants and presentation attendees across all lines of service will be able to obtain CEUs via the Red Cross online store.

http://www.redcrossstore.org/dp.aspx?pgid=547

CEUs can be obtained in aquatics, First Aid, CPR, AED, Caregiving, Instructor Training, International Services, Disaster Services, and Service to the Armed Forces.

Please contact me or the local chapter of the American Red Cross to obtain additional information concerning this important topic for anyone who requires CEUs in their profession.

New Lifeguard Instructor in Douglas, AZ

The city of Douglas Arizona recently obtained a new Lifeguard Instructor. Michelle Cardenas completed the Lifeguard Instructor Course on 11/16/2008. Congradulations, Michelle!

If you are interested in becoming a lifeguard or lifeguard instructor you can contact me or the Southern Arizona Chapter of the American Red Cross.

The summer 2009 swim season is fast approaching. If you have an aquatic facility in Cochise County and need to schedule a lifeguard, lifeguard management, or CPR for the Professional Rescuer class contact me or the chapter office.

Check out the new lifeguard insturctor updates and materials on Insturctor's Corner and at https://www.shopstaywell.com

Connie Harvey (American Red Cross - Host) to appear on Today Show

American Red Cross host Connie Harvey will appear on the Today Show on 20 Oct 08. She is expected to list what to include in a first aid kit and give a brief overview of CPR and AED techniques. Connie will appear as part of NBC's "First Aid Today" series. The Red Cross portion is expected to be on between 8:30 and 9:00 AM. Visit http://today.msnbc.msn.com/ to featured Red Cross First Aid/CPR/AED courses and materials that will be featured on the show.

Community Calendar

If you are an authorized provider for ARC classes, how do you know when public access classes are being conducted?
Should there be a community calendar posted somewhere to show available classes in Cochise County?
How do Volunteer and Independent AP Instructors get scheduled to teach classes to maintain their instructor certifications?
I think a web-based community calendar would help to coordinate this isssue. Let me know what you think about this idea. Please provide any comments or suggestions.

ARC Fundamentals of Instructor Training (FIT)

If you are interested in becoming a instructor for the American Red Cross, you will need to attend the ARC FIT training first. Upon successful completion of this training, you will need to attend the instructor training in the specific area/course of instruction you desire to teach. Finally, you will need to participate in the instructor validtion process. If you are interested in obtaining more information, contact Richard Wical (520.378.2311) or Bonnie Holman (520.515.5354).

Where did the American Red Cross office in Sierra Vista go?

If you were wondering what happened to the American Red Cross office here in Sierra Vista, wonder no more. There was an article in the Sierra Vista Herald outling the change:

http://www.svherald.com/articles/2008/09/03/opinion/letters_to_editor/doc48be4baeb3b28874034552.txt

The office on highway 92 was closed and services were re-distributed. If you are interested in health and safety classes, you can contact Bonnie Holman or Susan Dredge for informaton on registering for classes at the Cochise College center for lifelong learning (520.515.5354). Here's a link to a recent article on classes being conducted by Cochise College:

http://www.svherald.com/articles/2008/08/25/news/vertical_top_story/doc48b263688c9c7900084616.txt

How do I obtain instructor materials for ARC classes?

If you are teaching health and safety classes in Cochise County, you can obtain instructor materials in one of two ways:

1. Contact the Southern Arizona Chapter of the American Red Cross:

http://www.redcrossarizona.org/site/PageServer

(520) 318-6740

2. Contact me at 520.378.2311 or via this blog site.

Are you using the correct forms when you teach an ARC class in Cochise County?

If you are conducting health and safety classes in Cochise County for the American Red Cross, you should be using the following forms:

Course Record Sheet

Course Record Addendum

These forms can be located at the Instructor's Corner website:

https://www.instructorscorner.org/RedCross/subsection.aspx?Category=10&SubSectionId=25

Note: You must register for an Instructor's Corner account if you don't already have one. Follow the steps for registering an account at:

https://www.instructorscorner.org/RedCross/Login.aspx?ReturnURL=/RedCross/section.aspx?Category=10