The continually increasing number of recreational water illnesses (RWIs) demonstrates that current training, management and monitoring practices are inadequate. The generalized training currently available does not appear adequate for many swimming pool and aquatic venue operators. A root-cause analysis of outbreaks and be coupled with facility design parameters to produce a list of likely failure points for increased monitoring using a HACCP-like approach. This open-access guide can be used by both operators and inspectors to decrease systemic failures and thus combat the upward trend in outbreaks of RWIs.