jamais
03-03-2006, 09:04 PM
I have lifted the following from the Two Wheeled Texans website. The area concerned is Austin, Texas.
Some interesting data from the Austin Trauma Center (Brakenridge Hospital) and a letter to the Mayor from the head of Trauma Services:
Quote:
March 1, 2006
Mayor Will Wynn
Toby Futrell, City Manager
Stan Knee, Police Chief
Members of the City Council
Re: Driving Under the Influence
For over twenty years now I have watched a continual stream of ruined and lost lives resulting from DUI accidents. Each and every one is tragic, and totally preventable. Attached find some data I hope you will find shocking. It is evident that our community must increase efforts to reduce DUI accidents and fatalities, and make the roads safer for all of us. Nationally it is estimated that between 25-30% of all accidents involve an impaired driver. Definition and methodological problems complicate the comparison and analysis of national data, as well as our locally accumulated data, but some facts are evident. Data from our own community accumulated at the Brackenridge Hospital Trauma Center is found attached, and summarized below.
In 2005 we cared for 723 adult motor vehicle drivers and 204 motorcycle drivers involved in accidents with injuries that meet the American College of Surgeons guidelines for Category 1 or Category 2 traumatic injuries. Of those motor vehicle drivers tested (388/723) 36% of all car accidents involved a driver with a blood alcohol of greater than 0.1% (0.08% is legally intoxicated). An additional 7% had blood alcohol levels of <0.1%. This total of 43% seems to far outstrip the national percentages. 20% of these drivers had blood alcohol levels of greater than 0.2% (approaching three times the legally drunk level). As astounding as the alcohol testing results are ONLY 35% of drivers tested had no detectable drugs in their system!! 31% of samples were positive for opiates, 29% for benzodiazepines, 18% marijuana, and 14% cocaine. 62% of these drivers tested were positive for more than one drug. Had we tested EVERY driver I am certain the total numbers were actually higher.
In this group of DUI drivers only 23% reported using seatbelts.
Where should we focus efforts to reduce this carnage? What are the current plans for addressing this problem?
Respectfully,
Dr. Patrick J. Crocker, FACEP
Chief, Emergency Medicine
Brackenridge and Children’s Hospital of Austin
Hope all the gobbeldy-gook make sense.
Catagory 1 = Critical Condition
Catagory 2= Serious Condition
ETOH = ethyl alcohol ingestion (booze)
The death rate is highly under represented here, because we obtain field pronouncements. If you are already dead, you will never arrive at the hospital, you go straight to the Medical Examiner's Office instead. There were about 200 traffic fatalities in Travis County.
Unfortunately, I can't reproduce the table which breaks down the drug and alcohol percentages but you can go to this link for the details:
file:///Users/aualcapt/Documents/Be%20very%20afraid%20-%20Travis%20County%20Toxicology%20-%20TWT%20Forums.webarchive
You'll note that where alcohol was a factor, it was involved in 47% of the motorcycle accidents. Only 16% of the riders were wearing helmets.
__________________
Some interesting data from the Austin Trauma Center (Brakenridge Hospital) and a letter to the Mayor from the head of Trauma Services:
Quote:
March 1, 2006
Mayor Will Wynn
Toby Futrell, City Manager
Stan Knee, Police Chief
Members of the City Council
Re: Driving Under the Influence
For over twenty years now I have watched a continual stream of ruined and lost lives resulting from DUI accidents. Each and every one is tragic, and totally preventable. Attached find some data I hope you will find shocking. It is evident that our community must increase efforts to reduce DUI accidents and fatalities, and make the roads safer for all of us. Nationally it is estimated that between 25-30% of all accidents involve an impaired driver. Definition and methodological problems complicate the comparison and analysis of national data, as well as our locally accumulated data, but some facts are evident. Data from our own community accumulated at the Brackenridge Hospital Trauma Center is found attached, and summarized below.
In 2005 we cared for 723 adult motor vehicle drivers and 204 motorcycle drivers involved in accidents with injuries that meet the American College of Surgeons guidelines for Category 1 or Category 2 traumatic injuries. Of those motor vehicle drivers tested (388/723) 36% of all car accidents involved a driver with a blood alcohol of greater than 0.1% (0.08% is legally intoxicated). An additional 7% had blood alcohol levels of <0.1%. This total of 43% seems to far outstrip the national percentages. 20% of these drivers had blood alcohol levels of greater than 0.2% (approaching three times the legally drunk level). As astounding as the alcohol testing results are ONLY 35% of drivers tested had no detectable drugs in their system!! 31% of samples were positive for opiates, 29% for benzodiazepines, 18% marijuana, and 14% cocaine. 62% of these drivers tested were positive for more than one drug. Had we tested EVERY driver I am certain the total numbers were actually higher.
In this group of DUI drivers only 23% reported using seatbelts.
Where should we focus efforts to reduce this carnage? What are the current plans for addressing this problem?
Respectfully,
Dr. Patrick J. Crocker, FACEP
Chief, Emergency Medicine
Brackenridge and Children’s Hospital of Austin
Hope all the gobbeldy-gook make sense.
Catagory 1 = Critical Condition
Catagory 2= Serious Condition
ETOH = ethyl alcohol ingestion (booze)
The death rate is highly under represented here, because we obtain field pronouncements. If you are already dead, you will never arrive at the hospital, you go straight to the Medical Examiner's Office instead. There were about 200 traffic fatalities in Travis County.
Unfortunately, I can't reproduce the table which breaks down the drug and alcohol percentages but you can go to this link for the details:
file:///Users/aualcapt/Documents/Be%20very%20afraid%20-%20Travis%20County%20Toxicology%20-%20TWT%20Forums.webarchive
You'll note that where alcohol was a factor, it was involved in 47% of the motorcycle accidents. Only 16% of the riders were wearing helmets.
__________________