Medicine, science, and the law
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This paper aims to estimate the incidence of motor vehicle accident (MVA) related deaths and identify the factors associated with the causes of the high road death toll in Transkei region. A retrospective review and analysis was performed of all medico-legal autopsies (n=6181) between January 1993 and December 1999, of which 39% (1778/4525) were deaths as a result of MVAs. During the seven-year period (January 1993-December 1999), MVA deaths in Transkei region accounted for an average of 63 deaths per 100,000 population per year. ⋯ MVA deaths have come down from 39% (248) of all trauma-related deaths in 1993 to 29% (193) in 1999. The male/female ratio is 3.3:1; and 50% of victims were between 21 and 40 years of age. In conclusion, there are high motor vehicle accident-related deaths in Transkei region of South Africa.
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Nearly two billion passengers travel each year on commercial air flights. More elderly people and/or people with a pre-existing condition are taking to the air and with the anticipated growth of air travel, in-flight illnesses and injuries are expected to increase as well. ⋯ This paper describes in-flight resources available to a physician who is called upon to treat an ill or injured passenger. Two questions concerning the French physician passenger are discussed: What are the liabilities of the physician who does not respond to the call of a medical event aboard an aircraft? What are the liabilities of the physician providing assistance to a sick passenger? The different liabilities and also the legal status of the French physician passenger are examined.