Beneath the Surface: A Retrospective Analysis of Pediatric Drowning Trends & Risk Factors in Quebec

Despite the known importance of water safety, and recent efforts to enact pool safety legislation, drowning remains a leading cause of unintentional injury death in Canada. To date, little is known about the rates of pediatric drownings in Québec, the severity of these drownings, and the trends associated with the adoption of provincial regulations of pool enclosures – legislation which has been delayed twice, and remains to be fully enacted. This study aims to assess these knowledge gaps.