Brittany
Road Safety is no accident, and with different reports that road traffic injuries kill and injure or disable million people each year. Road crashes are the second leading cause of death globally among young people and affect the most economically active members of the population. It has been reported that deaths from road traffic injuries occur in low and middle income countries even though these account for only a minority of all motor vehicles. In these countries, reasons cited for the high burden include the growth in motor vehicles, higher number of people killed per crash, poor public health structure and poor enforcement of traffic regulations.
Car Accident Lawyers in Pennington know how to obtain the evidence necessary to help victims recover compensation following car accidents. A firm can work to make sure that an insurance company does not use deceptive tactics to dodge liability.
For some, wearing a seat belt is not compulsory in the back and very few back seat passengers were strapped in. This indicates that complying with regulations is more important than wearing a seat belt for protection and there is probably little knowledge of the dangers to other passengers and the driver. Back seat passengers who do not wear seat belts are three times more likely to suffer death or serious injury than those who do. There is evidence that safety education can improve knowledge and behavior but that improvement declines with time so must be repeated at regular intervals.
There is also a perception among the population that it is cruel to keep a child alone in the back of the car and there is probably little awareness of the dangers to children of sitting in the front seat. A frequent occurrence is a child sitting in the front on the mother’s knee, close to the windscreen. An education program needs to be instituted to increase knowledge and awareness and to ensure that parents understand the importance of using child restraint equipment properly.
Most pre-crash prevention can be attributed to the vehicle driver in attitudes and actions, and in maintaining roadworthiness of the vehicle. Since most injuries can be attributed to improper human behavior, driver responsibility seems to be a good place to start. Ensuring all occupants are wearing a seat belt would be a simple activity, which would have an impact on mortality and morbidity and put the responsibility onto the driver of the vehicle. Health education agencies, for example local community clinics, could be involved in increasing the awareness of the population and promoting new regulations.
Other areas for development involving the health services include the provision of emergency services, especially at the roadside. Health care workers are very aware of the burden to the health service and the community particularly in emergency care, rehabilitation and care following permanent injuries and the consequences of the loss of the breadwinner or main carer in a family. Road traffic injuries are responsible for the majority of disability and occupation handicap from major traumatic injury.
The WHO recommends that raising the awareness of all interested parties is the first step in injury prevention. Partnerships with other interested agencies, for example police and town planners, would allow health agencies to be involved in developing safety strategies to reduce injuries and deaths from road accidents. Health workers could also show these groups the cost to the health service of accident black spots, for example by producing figures comparing the cost of road improvements versus the financial burden on health services and the community.
