A Guide for Traffic Safety Practitioners: Best Practices for Increasing Seat Belt Use in Rural Communities [Traffic Tech]

This edition of Traffic Tech brief describes the four major components of NHTSA\u2019s forthcoming report, A Guide for Traffic Safety Practitioners: Best Practices for Increasing Seat Belt Use in Rural Communities. This resource will give rural traffic safety practitioners information to implement best practices, including examples of evidence-based and promising programs, to increase seat belt use in rural areas

Standardized reporting using CODES (Crash Outcome Data Evaluation System)

DTNH-22-97-H-07282While CODES projects have expanded to 25 states, there is no standardized reporting of the outcome measures that are available with linked data. This paper describes our efforts to build a standard format for reporting these outcomes. This format is conceptualized by laying the injury \u201cpyramid\u201d on its side. Outcome measures are reported as columns across a page with increasing levels of severity from left to right. We discuss several aspects of format development including levels of reporting, specific outcome measures, rates, and selection of appropriate denominators. These simplified reports can be used to plan further studies or as a source of information for fact sheets for further dissemination. Examples of implementation of these reports are provided from the Maine CODES project

Self-reported safety belt use among emergency department patients in Boston, Massachusetts

BACKGROUND: Safety belt use is 80% nationally, yet only 63% in Massachusetts. Safety belt use among potentially at-risk groups in Boston is unknown. We sought to assess the prevalence and correlates of belt non-use among emergency department (ED) patients in Boston. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey with systematic sampling was conducted on non-urgent ED patients age ≥18. A closed-ended survey was administered by interview. Safety belt use was defined via two methods: a single-item and a multiple-item measure of safety belt use. Each was scored using a 5-point frequency scale. Responses were used to categorize safety belt use as 'always' or less than 'always'. Outcome for multivariate logistic regression analysis was safety belt use less than 'always'. RESULTS: Of 478 patients approached, 381 (80%) participated. Participants were 48% female, 48% African-American, 40% White, median age 39. Among participants, 250 (66%) had been in a car crash; 234 (61%) had a valid driver's license, and 42 (11%) had been ticketed for belt non-use. Using two different survey measures, a single-item and a multiple-item measure, safety belt use 'always' was 51% and 36% respectively. According to separate regression models, factors associated with belt non-use included male gender, alcohol consumption >5 drinks in one episode, riding with others that drink and drive, ever receiving a citation for belt non-use, believing that safety belt use is 'uncomfortable', and that 'I just forget', while 'It's my usual habit' was protective. CONCLUSION: ED patients at an urban hospital in Boston have considerably lower self-reported safety belt use than state or national estimates. An ED-based intervention to increase safety belt use among this hard-to-reach population warrants consideration

Patients with Alcohol Problems in the Emergency Department, Part 1: Improving Detection *

Medical and social problems related to alcohol use are frequently seen in the ED. Often, the tempo of emergency medicine practice seems to preclude assessment beyond that required by the acute complaint. However, detection of ED patients with alcohol problems can occur using brief screening tools. This article was developed by members of the SAEM Substance Abuse Task Force, and describes screening tools that have been used successfully to identify atrisk and dependent drinkers. Their brevity, reproducibility, and accuracy vary somewhat, but screening can be realistically performed in the busy ED setting. The early detection of patients with alcohol problems would provide the opportunity for early intervention, and may reduce subsequent morbidity and mortality in this patient population.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/72559/1/j.1553-2712.1998.tb02696.x.pd

Potential effects of lowering the BAC limit on injuries, fatalities, and costs

© 2017 Elsevier Ltd and National Safety Council Introduction: Potential health and cost impacts of lowering the BAC limit for U.S. drivers below.08% were explored through analyses of reductions in crash incidence, injury severity, and costs based on five scenarios with varying assumptions about how the change to a.05% BAC limit might affect alcohol-impaired driving. Methods: Distribution of crashes by injury level and highest driver or non-occupant BAC levels for 2010, together with unit crash costs provided a base for comparison. Scenario 1 assumed all alcohol-impaired driving ceased; scenario 2 assumed all drivers obeyed the law, and scenario 3 assumed decreases in driver BAC levels would be limited to those who had been driving near the legal limit before the change. Scenario 4 was based on changes in driver BAC levels associated with a 08% to.05% BAC limit change in Australia, and scenario 5 was based on changes in alcohol-related crashes associated with the change to the.08% BAC limit in the United States. The number of casualties prevented in each scenario was estimated using relative risks of crash involvement, and changes in societal costs were estimated using the unit costs. Results: Reductions ranging from 71% to 99% in fatalities, injuries, and costs related to alcohol-impaired driving were estimated in scenarios 1 and 2. Scenarios 3–5 produced smaller reductions ranging from 4% to 16% for alcohol-impaired fatalities, injuries, and costs. Conclusion: The wide difference between the outcomes of the two sets of scenarios reflects the sensitivity of BAC policy benefits to driver compliance behavior. Practical application: The quantification of the reduction in the number and costs of traffic crash casualties in the set of behavioral scenarios explored in this research can inform policymakers about the extent and limits of benefits achievable by lowering the BAC limits as they consider strategies to reduce alcohol-impaired driving