{"id":429895,"date":"2020-05-01T15:43:44","date_gmt":"2020-05-01T22:43:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=429895"},"modified":"2020-06-07T08:04:30","modified_gmt":"2020-06-07T15:04:30","slug":"summer-is-here-is-your-pool-safe-from-coronavirus-questions-to-ask","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/summer-is-here-is-your-pool-safe-from-coronavirus-questions-to-ask\/","title":{"rendered":"Summer is Here: Is Your Pool Safe From Coronavirus? Questions to Ask"},"content":{"rendered":"

Coronavirus Questions to Ask<\/strong><\/p>\n

With Memorial Day here in the United States, that means we have hit the point where pool time is expected and families look to gather under the sun.<\/p>\n

However, depending on which part of the world and country people reside, the opening of pools will vary. If pools are given the green light to open, how safe are they? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention<\/a>, there is a lack of evidence that the coronavirus can be spread to people by water in swimming pools, hot tubs and water\/sprinkler parks.<\/p>\n

The biggest issue is how these facilities handle social-distancing guidelines and operate their daily schedules<\/a>. With many children flocking to pools, the chance of big groups of people exist. It is imperative that pool managers implement a schedule and program that promotes a safe environment outside of the water. Some concerns do not immediately come to mind, but must be considered.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bigger issue is that you have to change in shared locker rooms, and people are often touching their mouths, nose and face and then touching the lockers,\u201d said Dr. Michael Ison<\/strong>, an infectious disease physician at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago, in an interview with NBC Chicago.<\/p>\n

Ison recommended that with pool-goers touching ladders, floats, water fountains and vests, among other items, people must wash their hands frequently, including before and after they enter the pool. Ison suggested that the following questions are asked of individual pools and their coordinators in order to gauge what types of protocols are in place:<\/p>\n