Accident; analysis and prevention
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The road safety literature is typified by a high degree of compartmentalization between studies that focus on infrastructure and traffic conditions and those devoted to the evaluation of public policies and regulations. As a result, few studies adopt a unified empirical framework in their attempts at evaluating the road safety performance of public interventions, thus limiting our understanding of successful strategies in this regard. ⋯ Our results show the importance of considering both types of determinants in a unified framework. Moreover, we highlight the importance of maintenance spending given its effectiveness in reducing fatalities and casualties in the current economic context of austerity that is having such a marked impact on investment efforts in Spain.
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Accident rates and fatality rates for Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) missions have been investigated recently, but none of these studies considered the influence of the seating position in the helicopter. The aim of the present descriptive and observational study was to analyze injury severity depending on the seating position during HEMS accidents in Germany. ⋯ In HEMS accidents, the patients' position and the HEMS crew member rear seat were found to be at the highest risk for fatal or severe injuries. These results support the urgent requirement of a large international data base for HEMS accidents as a basis for further studies to improve the safety in HEMS missions.
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To conduct a pilot study to evaluate the predictive value of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment test (MoCA) and a brief test of multiple object tracking (MOT) relative to other tests of cognition and attention in identifying at-risk older drivers, and to determine which combination of tests provided the best overall prediction. ⋯ Although the best four-test combination was much better than a single test in identifying at-risk drivers, there is still much work to do in this field to establish test batteries that have both high sensitivity and specificity.
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Novice drivers are overrepresented in traffic collisions, especially in their first year of solo driving. It is widely accepted that some driving behaviours (such as speeding and thrill-seeking) increase risk in this group. Increasingly research is suggesting that attitudes and behavioural intentions held in the pre-driver and learning stage are important in determining later driver behaviour in solo driving. ⋯ A sample of 204 learner drivers completed a self-report questionnaire near the beginning of their learning, and then again shortly after they passed their practical driving test. Results showed that self-reported intentions regarding speed choice, perceptions regarding skill level, and intentions regarding thrill-seeking (through driving) became less safe over this time period, while self-reported intentions regarding following distance and overtaking tendency became safer. The results are discussed with reference to models of driver behaviour that focus on task difficulty; it is suggested that the manner in which behind-the-wheel experience relates to the risk measures of interest may be the key determining factor in how these change over the course of learning to drive.
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Observational Study
Observational study of child restraining practice on Norwegian high-speed roads: restraint misuse poses a major threat to child passenger safety.
Restraint misuse and other occupant safety errors are the major cause of fatal and, severe injuries among child passengers in motor vehicle collisions. The main objectives of the present, study were to provide estimates of restraining practice among children younger than 16 years, traveling on Norwegian high-speed roads, and to uncover the high-risk groups associated with, restraint misuse and other safety errors. ⋯ This study provides a detailed description of the characteristics of restraint misuse and, the occupant's exposure to unsecured objects. Future education and awareness campaigns should, focus on children aged <8 years. The main challenges are to ensure correct routing and tightness of, harness straps and seat belts, correct installation of child restraints, and avoidance of premature, graduation from child restraints to seat belts only. Information campaigns should also advocate the use, of chest clips and address the potential risks of hard, heavy objects in the passenger compartment and, the importance of the placement and strapping of heavy objects in the trunk.