asic principles of aquatic risk

management. He also said that the needs for aquatic risk management

were threats of negligence litigation, a trend for courts to impose verdicts

favoring the plaintiff, the need to better educate the public about aquatic

safety, a high level of awareness by the public about the dangers associ-

ated with aquatic environments, and stronger emphasis on preventative

practices rather than on reactionary measures.

Most litigation involving aquatics emanates from the injury of a partici-

pant, the injured plaintiff alleging negligence on the part of the institution.

Negligence, in such cases, is conduct that falls below the standard estab-

lished by the law for the protection of others against unreasonable risk or

harm. In order for negligence to exist, four elements must be present: (1)

the defendant must owe the plaintiff a legal duty of care, (2) the defendant

must breach that duty, (3) the defendant’s breach of duty must be the

6SMIJ – VOL. 8, Number 2, 2012

proximate cause of the plaintiff’s injury, and (4) the plaintiff must incur ac-

tual loss or damages. If the defendant institution can demonstrate that even

one of the elements does not exist, there can be no negligence. Fletemey-

er (2003) provided seven steps for increasing safety in aquatic risk man-

agement: step 1 identifying goals and objectives; step 2 organizing an

assessment team; step 3 identifying and measuring risks; step 4 provid-

ing effective warning; step 5 training staff; step 6 record keeping ; and

step 7 conducting performance and safety audits. Many hazards related

to aquatic environment are not easily recognizable. The above seven steps

really highlight the implementation of safety in aquatics. If aquatic directors

can follow all seven steps and are also willing to apply these seven steps

in their aquatic centers, it will not be difficult to see major improvements

and a reduction in the accident rate in the aquatic centers (Hsiao, 2005).

Risk management has been defined as a scientific approach to dealing

with pure risks by anticipating possible accidental losses and designing

and implementing procedures that minimize the occurrence of losses or the

financial impact of the losses that do occur. The concept of risk manage-

ment in recreation and sport began in the mid 1970s. The focus of risk

management in recreation is on limiting exposure to danger, harm, or haz-

ards to the facility. The most prevalent danger or harm that a facility man-

ager would attempt to minimize is injuries to patrons at the facility that cre-

ate the possibility of lawsuits (Styles, 2002).

Risk management was born of necessity – human, legal, and political.

As early as the late 1800’s, the American labor movement started to ad-

dress the dangers of mining and factory work. Laws were passed and

strikes were called as a result of existing mine and factory safety problems.

While there are still dangers, the combination of federal and state safety in-

spections, labor demands, protective equipment, and safety laws have re-

sulted in safer conditions in modern mining operations and factories. The

owners and operators of mines and factories now are faced with expensive

litigation if an accident occurs. The earliest organizations to practice risk

management were insurance companies whose techniques have been mod-

ified and applied by a variety of organizations including hospitals, public

schools, and universities.

Appenzeller (1998) stated that risk management has been associated

with business and especially the insurance industry for many years. Loss

control, exposure to loss, pre- and post- loss objectives, risk management

strategies, and risk management techniques were common terms in both

the business and insurance industries prior to the 1970s. In the mid-1970s

and especially in the 1980s and the 1990s, risk management became a fa-

miliar expression of a program designed to meet the sport litigation crisis

head-on. In the 21st century, risk management will become a close com-

panion to the sport business industry in its attempt to reduce losses and

THE ROLE OF RISK MANAGEMENT IN DECREASE OF LAWSUITS OF SWIMMING POOLS 7

exposures, while increasing the desire to make the sport business industry

safer (Lhotsky, 2006).

Risk management in sporting environments is not a new idea. A number

of authors identified the need for adopting risk management, safety prac-

tices and policies, but few have moved beyond traditional occupational

health and safety approaches. Risk management strategies have been used

in a wide range of sports (Otago & Brown, 2003).

Sharp (1990) listed three compelling reasons to institute risk management

programs in the physical education/athletic setting. The first reason is the

American public has assumed a litigious posture relative to athletics. The cli-

mate is extremely litigation oriented and lawyers seem to always be in search

of a “deep pocket” to cover costs of injury, regardless of who is at fault. The

second reason often cited concerns the judicial attitude toward liability and

sports. Liability has been expanded to cover those who administer these sport

and recreation programs. The usual defense of assumption of risk has been

severely eroded over the past few years by judicial interpretation. The third fac-

tor is the trend toward abrogation of government immunity. By providing a

safe, honest, and efficient environment, a business can reduce legal liability

and enhance the positive reputation of the business. Effective risk management

should identify as many liabilities and risk factors as possible, present alterna-

tive solutions, and make cost-effective recommendations (Lhotsky, 2006).

The importance of risk management as to the key liability and risk man-

agement trends into the 21 century. Some of the future trends forecasted

were as follows:

Liability issues will continue to manifest themselves as problems that re-

quire sound risk management plans.

Education in risk management strategies will continue to be in demand

by sport/recreation managers in order to provide safer programs.

Risk management will continue to be a key element in the design of

new recreational sport facilities.

Professional preparation in liability and risk management will become

more important for students pursuing careers in sport management.

Risk management planning will take on increased important to recre-

ational sports programs.

More recreational sports programs/agencies will develop comprehensive

risk management plans.

Increase in willingness of participants to engage in litigation to resolve

issues related to participation in recreational sports.

There will be an increase demand for employee certification in special-

ized activity programs.

There will be continued growth in recreational facilities.

High-risk activities will become more popular in the years to come

(Styles, 2002).

8SMIJ – VOL. 8, Number 2, 2012

Although the management of liability risks for public agencies is of re-

cent origin, the practice has been used in the private sector for many

years. The earliest organizations to practice risk management were insur-

ance companies whose techniques have been modified and applied by

hospitals, public schools, and universities. These groups dealt primarily

with financial risk management. However, the management of financial risks

alone would not be sufficient for the unique needs of the sport, physical

education and leisure industries. Therefore, the sport industry must focus

on not only financial risk management but also programmatic risk man-

agement. For example, a loss in the insurance industry is financial, but a

loss in the sport industry must also encompass the possibility or risk that

a participant would suffer harm. It is acknowledged that a participant or

employee injury could result in a financial loss to the agency or organiza-

tion, but the overriding reason for risk control should be moral responsibil-

ity as related to the injury of another, as well as the legal duty to provide

a safe environment for participation (Aaron, 2004).

Because of the increase in the volume of use and the types of activities

performed, these facilities have a wide variety of exposure to lawsuits in their

daily operations (Mulrooney & Farmer, 1995). There was a time when litigation

was not a major issue for recreational sport injuries because it was accepted

that participants assumed the risks of participating in a physical activity. How-

ever, in todays society, lawsuits against recreation businesses are common, as

there has been an increase in litigation regarding injuries sustained in recre-

ational activity and competition (Burnstein, 1994; Cotton, 2001a).

The focus of risk management in recreation is on limiting exposure to

danger, harm, or hazards to the facility. The most prevalent danger or harm

that a facility manager would attempt to minimize is injuries to patrons at

the facility that create the possibility of lawsuits. Hence the goals of risk

management are to enable organizations to offer the activities and services

that they deem desirable in a safe environment and to reduce the possibil-

ity of a lawsuit and monetary losses while operating a recreation facility.

Based on the theory and practice of risk management from the insurance

industry, sport and recreation professionals have identified the following el-

ements as being essential for success of the risk management practices:

risk identification; risk assessment; risk treatment; and risk implementation

and standard operating procedures (Styles, 2002).

Those who manage physical education, athletic, and recreation pro-

grams have a number of legal duties that they are expected to carry out.

Among these is an obligation to take reasonable precautions to ensure safe

programs and facilities. According to Hronek and Spengler (2002, p. 273),

“the law recognizes a duty owed by coaches, recreation managers, and

their staff to provide safe facilities for both participants and spectators”.

Physical educations and sports facilities that are poorly planned, designed,

THE ROLE OF RISK MANAGEMENT IN DECREASE OF LAWSUITS OF SWIMMING POOLS 9

or constructed may lead to many problems for program leaders in those fa-

cilities. A poorly designed facility may limit the programs that can be of-

fered; make the facility harder to operate, maintain, and supervise; and sig-

nificantly increase the participant’s exposure to hazardous conditions.

These factors can lead to a greater likelihood of injury and can increase

the organizations exposure to claims of negligence (Seidler, 2006).

It has important risk management applications for physical educators

and sport managers. Physical educators and sport managers must be pro-

tective in protecting their participants from unreasonable risk of harm they

should schedule regular inspections of fields and other playing surfaces be-

fore participant use. In addition, equipment should be checked regularly to

detect any damage or wear that would make the equipment unreasonably

dangerous for participant use (Carroll & Connaughton, 2006)

Methodology

The statistical population of the research included 310 managers of pub-

lic and private swimming pools which 119 were selected as statistical sam-

ples by means of random sampling. The research method was descriptive

and survey, and in measurement form. 2 questionnaires were used, on re-

lating to demographic data and general information and the other to risk

management practices and their validity was determined by alpha kronbach

method (./85). The required information was collected by personal interviews

during the time acting of managers in pools gathered and the data was an-

alyzed by using person correlation coefficient. The study was designed to

investigate the risk management status, and associated legal concerns in

aquatic centers in Tehran. Data were obtained through a 45-item question-

naire administered to 119 directors of aquatic facilities in Tehran.

Results

Table 1 shows that the population was primarily male and only 27 or

22.7% of the 119 participants were women.

Table 1.

Gender of Respondents

(N = 119)

Male Female

92 27

10 SMIJ – VOL. 8, Number 2, 2012

Table 2 presents activities most often found in the pools in Tehran were

recreational (Offered by 117 institutions) and Basic swimming class (offered

by 79 institutions). Risk management plans existed in only 52 (43.7%) of

the facilities. Nearly 42% of the institutions reported three or more acci-

dents/injuries per year.

The majority of the incidents occurred in the locker room or the pool

deck. Only 5% or 7 incidents occurred in the water (Table 2). Despite the

fact that nearly half of the institutions had accidents, only 22.6% had been

sued (Table3 and 4).

Table 2.

General Information: Activities and Risk Management Plan

Activities Offered by Swimming Pool N

recreational 117

Scuba diving class 5

Water aerobic class 38

Basic swimming class 79

Water polo 12

Lifeguard training course 35

CPR certificated course 17

hydrotherapy 22

Risk management plan N

Yes 52

No 67

Table 3.

General Information: Accidents/Injuries Frequency

Number of Accidents/Injuries in Last 12 Months Percent (N = 119)

0 45.4

1 15.1

2 8.4

3 8.4

4 6.7

5 2.5

6 or more 13.4

THE ROLE OF RISK MANAGEMENT IN DECREASE OF LAWSUITS OF SWIMMING POOLS 11

Location of Highest Number of Reported Percent (N = 119)

Accidents/Incidents

Diving board 35.3

Locker room 23.5

Pool deck 25.1

Jacuzzi 10.1

Sauna 10.9

Table 4.

General Information: Litigation Status

Past Lawsuits Percent (N = 119)

No 77.3

Yes 22.7

Number of Times Institution Has Been Sued Percent (N = 119)

0 77.3

1 14.3

25

.0

3 or more 3.4

Results of this study show that significant relationship existed between

incidents of accidents/injuries and lawsuits in swimming pools in Tehran

(Table 5). From other results of this study is significant relationship exist-

ed between risk management practice and accidents/injuries and lawsuits

(Table 5). Also significant relationship existed between risk management

practice and lawsuits and lawsuits (Table 5).

Table 5.

Person correlation coefficient between the accidents/injuries

and lawsuits and risk management

Variable accidents/injuries lawsuits Risk management

practice

accidents/injuries 1 ./437(**) -./269(**)

./000 ./003

12 SMIJ – VOL. 8, Number 2, 2012

Lawsuits ./437(**) 1 -./234(**)

./000 ./010

Risk management -./269(**) -./234(**) 1

practice ./003 ./010

Discussion and Conclusion

Risk is a peril or the possibility of exposure or harm. Risk management

has been defined as controlling the financial and personal injury losses

from sudden, unforeseen, unusual accidents and intentional torts. Appen-

zeller (1998) stated that risks are inherent in sport and even the safest pro-

grams can never avoid accidents and injuries. The law expects that sport

managers develop risk management and loss programs to ensure a safe

environment for all who participate in sports.

The safety of facility event attendees, patrons, spectators and event par-

ticipants is of primary concern to the facility manager (Madden, 1998). If a

facility manager does not keep the facility safe, injuries to attendees, pa-

trons, spectators, and event participants are bound to occur. Although

there are many areas of law that are important to a facility manager, the

greatest numbers of lawsuits brought against a provider (school, munici-

pality, private enterprise, or non-profit association) are based in negligence

liability (van der Smissen, 2001).

While lawsuits cannot be prevented they can be minimized when em-

ployees understand negligence principles and practice good management

(Kaiser, 1986). Therefore, it is essential that a facility manager today un-

derstand the elements of negligence (van der Smissen, 2001). The follow-

ing will briefly examine negligence liability and some law topics related to

negligence.

Negligence can be defined as carelessly performing a duty or careless-

ly failing to perform a duty that results in injury to a participant or damage

to property (Seidler, 1999). In order to be found guilty of negligence, four

elements need to exist: duty, breach, cause, and harm. There are several

elements of negligence. Each of the four negligence elements has to be

present for a person to recover under a negligence claim. The four ele-

ments are:

1. Owing someone a duty.

2. Breaching that duty.

THE ROLE OF RISK MANAGEMENT IN DECREASE OF LAWSUITS OF SWIMMING POOLS 13

3. The breach of that duty was the proximate cause of the person’s in-

jury.

4. The person was actually injured (van der Smissen, 1990).

The increase in lawsuits in the leisure and recreational area is due to

several reasons: increased participation in recreation; an increase in year

round activities; new technology and more sophisticated equipment; and in-

creased accessibility to legal services (Baley & Mathews, 1984).

The increase in litigation in recreational settings creates a need for

recreational professionals to reduce risk that may lead to injuries and fi-

nancial losses. Risk management and its application is form of loss control

and has been identified by professionals in the recreational industry as a

need within the organizational structure of a recreational facility (Giles &

Gonsoulin, 1991). The most prevalent danger that a recreational facility

manager needs to minimize is the number of injuries to patrons, and the

concomitant lawsuits. Therefore, the obvious goal of risk management is to

reduce to possible monetary losses when running a facility (Mulrooney &

Ammon, 1995).

Risk management has been identified as the ‘best buy’ in sports injury

prevention and an integral part of best-practice sport and leisure manage-

ment systems (Donaldson et al, 2009). Risk management is a procedure to

reduce potential legal liability. It is a proactive system which attempts to

address potential problem areas before they actually lead to reactively de-

fending legal proceedings. The aim is a safer environment and “legally

safer” operational procedures. Education of all people involved, their ac-

ceptance of the importance of risk management, and open communication

of ideas is vital to a risk management plan’s success. While the law now

affects the conduct of sports greater than ever before, don’t see this as a

negative, but as a positive reason to take the initiative to implement safe

practices and risk management programs. There can be a great sense of

achievement in knowing that you are satisfying your legal, moral and ethi-

cal duties by providing good, safe and effective sporting services. It really

is all about good business.

References

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agement behaviors of Florida high school athletic directors. Doctoral

Thesis, The Florida State University College of education.

Carroll, M. S. & Connaughton, D. P. 2006. Proper Maintenance of Athletic

Fields and Legal Liability. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation &

Dance; May/Jun 2006; 77, 5; Research Library pp: 10.

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Girvan, G & Girvan, J. T. 1993. Risk management practices in athletics-A

content analysis. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance; 64,

4; Research Library, pp: 26.

Hsiao, R. 2005. Analysis of risk management practices and litigation status

in aquatic centers. Doctoral dissertation, Florida State University College

of Education, Copyright by ProQuest Information and Learning Compa-

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