National Lifeguard certification is Canada's professional
lifeguard standard and is designed for lifesavers who wish to
obtain a responsible job and leadership experience. Successful
candidates are certified by the Lifesaving Society - Canada's
lifeguarding experts.
National Lifeguard - Waterpark certification is
designed to develop the fundamental values, judgment, knowledge,
skills and fitness required by waterfront lifeguards. The National
Lifeguard Waterfront course emphasizes the lifeguarding skills,
principles and practices, and the decision-making processes that
will assist the lifeguard to provide effective safety supervision
in waterfront environments.
Prerequisites: National Lifeguard - Pool
certification.
Instruction and certification: Current National
Lifeguard Instructors teach and evaluate most items, but only
National Lifeguard Examiners may certify candidates. The Lifesaving
Society deems its certifications to be "current" for 24 months from
the certification date.
Candidate recognition: National Lifeguard
certification card.
Required reference material:
Alert.
At-A-glance
Test Items
- *Waterpark orientation and analysis: Walk
through a waterpark, evaluate the ongoing activities and
demonstrate an understanding of:
- Features unique to waterparks, their increased potential for
danger and how analysis of these affects lifeguarding
- Enviromental hazards of pools
- *Lifeguarding slides: Demonstrate an
understanding of safety considerations and effective lifeguarding
for each of the following: moderate slides, high-speed slides,
drop-off slides, free- fall slides, "kiddie" slides.
- *Lifeguarding river rides: Demonstrate an
understanding of safety considerations and effective lifeguarding
for each of the following: continuous rivers, stop-and-go rivers,
slow rivers, activity rivers.
- *Lifeguarding wave pools: Demonstrate an
understanding of safety considerations and effective lifeguarding
for wave pools.
- *Entries and removals: Demonstrate three
entries and three removals appropriate for a waterpark
enviroment.
- Physical standards
- *† Sprint challenge: Demonstrate anaerobic
fitness: Starting in the water, swim 50 metres within 60 seconds
(50 yd. within 55 seconds).
- *† Object recovery: Demonstrate anaerobic
fitness and strength for an object recovery: Starting in the water,
swim 15 metres and surface dive to recover a 9 kg (20 lb.) object;
surface and carry the object 5 metres - all within 40 seconds.
- *Lifeguard communication: Demonstrate
effective communication with patrons, victims, other lifeguards,
supervisors and emergency service personnel.
- Pool supervision
- *Position and rotation: Demonstrate effective
waterpark supervision using lifeguard positioning and
rotation.
- *† Scanning and observation: Demonstrate
effective lifeguard scanning techniques and observation skills in
the waterpark environment.
- *Prevention and intervention: Demonstrate an
ability to recognize situations in which early lifeguard
intervention may prevent a rescue emergency.
:::
- *Specialized techniques: Demonstrate an
understanding of different rescue techniques appropriate for
specific waterpark features and special situations.
- *Missing person: Demonstrate an effective
search of the waterpark for a missing person as both a member and a
leader of a lifeguard team.
- Victim management
- *† Management of distressed or drowning
victim: Demonstrate effective management of a distressed
or drowning victim in deep water with and without an aid.
- *† Management of submerged, non-breathing
victim: Demonstrate effective management of a submerged,
non-breathing victim and perform 10 cycles of 2 ventilations:30
compressions on a CPR manikin.
- *Management of spinal injured victims: With
the assistance of one back-up lifeguard or assistant lifeguard and
one bystander, demonstrate effective management of suspected
spinal-injured victims (breathing and non-breathing) found in the
water.
- *† Management of an injured victim:
Demonstrate effective management of an injured victim on land or in
the water.
- Lifeguard situations
- † Lifeguard team situations: As a member of a
lifeguard team, respond to situations in a supervised aquatic
setting.
*Asterisk indicates instructor-evaluated item. The † symbol
denotes the only items evaluated during a recertification.