Proper seat belt use emphasised

Press, 19 July 1989, Page 3

Proper seat belt use emphasised

By

NEIL CLARKSON

Hospitals could save millions of dollars a year if all New Zealanders wore seat belts correctly, according to a road safety > campaigner, Dr Morgan Fahey. Dr Fahey, who is the president of the World Association for Emergency and Disaster Medicine, was commenting on the Road Safety Week organised by the Christchurch City Council. The week, which will begin on Sunday, was prompted by the Road . Safety Promotion Committee of the New Zealand Traffic Institute. In Christchurch the ' focus will be on the wear- .’ ing of seat belts and the promotion of the Students Against Drunk Driving (SADD) programme. Dr Fahey, who is also ; chairman of the co-ordi- ■ nating committee for road : safety in Christchurch, said it was not just a matter of wearing seat belts, but wearing them correctly. He said a year-long study of motor accident ■ victims treated at 11 West German hospitals in 1978 highlighted potential savings. The survey found that

the average cost of treating accident victims who had worn seat belts was $46 (in 1978 dollar terms). The average cost of treating those who were injured and not wearing seat belts was $10,875. Dr Fahey said a similar three to four-month study in Christchurch in 1980 showed similar patterns. Long-term intensive care treatment for accident victims in New Zealand today costs from $20,000 to $30,000 per person. Those going to spinal units can cost $lOO,OOO a year for care. "If everybody wore seat belts, and wore them correctly, the savings would be in terms of millions of dollars a year in hospital costs. “That excludes Accident Compensation Corporation costs for ongoing care and rehabilitation.” Dr Fahey said a recent American survey highlighted the reduction in the risk of serious head injury from wearing a cycle helmet. The study showed there was an 88 per cent drop in the risk of severe head and brain injury if a helmet was being worn at the time of an accident.