Morag Mackay, now at Eurosafe, sent me this interesting notice: “On the occasion of the 15th European Consumer Day, a coalition of twenty-eight European umbrella organisations are issuing a Joint Call appealing to the European Institutions and the Member States to create an EU-funded accident & injury data system under the co-ordination of the European Commission. Earlier this […]
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Department of good news-bad news
Today on FairWarning (an excellent site, btw) there was a good news announcement that the governor of Colorado signed a bill restricting firearms. As of July 1, background checks would be required for private and online gun sales and ammunition magazines holding more than 15 rounds would be banned. That is the good news. The bad […]
Distracted Driving
A recent Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) published by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention highlights survey results that reveal 69% of Americans between the ages of 18 to 64 had talked on a handheld cell phone while driving within the last 30 days. In addition, 30% admitted to texting or emailing […]
The gun debate and domestic violence
A controversial article pertains to two themes highlighted in Injury Prevention blogs this year – violence against women and gun ownership. On March 17, the New York Times published the article “In Some States, Gun Rights Trump Orders of Protection”, with reporting contributed by Griff Palmer and research contributed by Kristen Millares Young and Jack Styczynski. The lengthy article cites […]
US teens driving less but fatalities have increased
Editors note: Peter Jacobsen sent this to me for the blog along with the observation that he thought the US and NZ were the only industrialized countries that permit 16 to 18 year old drivers. (Not sure if he meant 16 in one country and 18 in the other, but readers can comment whether he […]
People in the news: Mark Rosenberg receives award
“Dr. Mark Rosenberg, president and CEO of the Task Force for Global Health, is being honored by Research!America, for his ground-breaking research in advancing injury prevention and road safety. Rosenberg will receive the 2013 Raymond and Beverly Sackler Award for Sustained National Leadership for reframing the concept that road traffic crashes are not accidents. The award […]
The never-ending bike helmet saga
The debate about the effectiveness of bicycle helmets seems endless. There has now been a Cochrane review, a meta-analysis by Attewell et al., and a re-analysis of this meta-analysis by Rune Elvik (one of the editors of Accident Analysis and Prevention (AAP). As well, after Tim Churches, an Australian epidemiologist attempted unsuccessfully to reproduce Elvik’s […]
Should the NHL Mandate Visors?
The ongoing debate regarding whether visors should be mandatory safety equipment in the National Hockey League (NHL) is likely to get some renewed attention after one of the league’s players, Rangers’ Marc Staal, suffered a serious eye injury in a recent game. Warning: don’t watch the video if you are squeamish. http://slapshot.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/03/06/eye-injury-to-ranger-raises-issue-of-helmet-visors-again/?src=xps Visors are currently optional […]
Veterinarian’s injuries arising from treating cattle
Over the weekend I came across an interesting article in the Australian Veterinary Journal whilst I was having a look at some recent injury prevention publications in Australia. Last month’s issue of the journal contained an article summarising cattle-specific injuries reported in the Health Risks of Australian Veterinarians Survey (HRAV). Of the 2188 serious injuries reported […]
Taking helmets seriously
Some of us take helmet wearing seriously. This is one of our granddaughters, Emma, age 5. We have had one day of spring so the pink and white bike was brought out. Please note Emma’s helmet, and, just as importantly, that which she made on her poupee (doll). Let this be a lesson to all. […]