DISTRACTED DRIVINGNATIONAL TRAUMA AWARENESS MONTH 2015

(DEVELOPED BY DONOVAN STEWART, RN, MSN)

DISTRACTED DRIVING-FACTS AND FIGURES ▪ More than 9 people are killed and more than 1,153

people are injured in crashes involving a distracted driver▪ 2012o 3,328 people killed in MVC’so 421,000 people were injured in MVC’s, 9% increase from

2011▪ 2011o 3,360 people killed in MVC’so 387,000 people were injured in MVC’s

(CDC, 2015)

FACTS AND FIGURES CONTINUED ▪ Overall, distractions are reported to play a role in 17

% of all injurious crashes that occurred in 2011

▪ 10 % of crash fatalities were also reported to be affected by distractionso 385 fatal crashes were reported to have involved the

use of cell phones as a distraction

(Sherin et al., 2014)

CDC DISTRACTED DRIVING STUDY ▪ 2011 data collection in the United States and seven

European countries (Belgium, France, Germany, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom)▪ Findings:o 69 % of drivers in the US ages 18-64 reported that they

had talked on their cell phone while drivingo 31% of US drivers ages 18-64 reported that they had

read or sent text messages or email messages while driving

(CDC, 2015)

SIMULATOR STUDIES▪ Drivers who text are more likely to “drift” their vehicle

within the lane than those who do not text while driving▪ Decreased time looking at the roado Drivers spent 40%-60% of their time looking at their

smartphoneso 37.6 % increased reaction timeo Increase incidents of lane drifting

▪ Texting while driving heavy vehicles increases the risk of crashing by 23 times compared to non-distracted driving▪ Texting activities take a driver’s eye from the road for an average of 4.6 seconds

(Sherin et al., 2014)

TEENAGE TEXTING WHILE DRIVING ▪ Teen handheld cell phone use for texting or Internet

browsing was nearly twice that of adults▪ Estimates that 3.7% of 16-24 year-olds were using

handheld devices while driving in 2011, more than double the percentage from 2010 (1.5 %)

▪ 63 % of all teens aged 12-17 years send text messages to friends and family every day

▪ Teenage driver’s risk of crashing is increased eightfold by dialing cell phone or reaching for an object

(Sherin et al., 2014)

PREVENTIVE MEASURES▪ Educational campaigns

▪ legislative opportunitieso local and state o Law enforcemento Schoolso Health professionals

▪ Changes in social norms will require consistent education from multiple sources through a combined strategy by all stakeholders

(Sherin et al., 2014)

CURRENT MEASURES ▪ National Safety Council o Dedicated April as Distracted Driving Awareness Month

▪ US Department of Transportationo First national distracted driving enforcement and advertising

campaign in 2014: “U Drive. U Text. U Pay.”▪ As of June 2014, a total of 43 states have banned texting

while driving▪ President Obamao October 2009 released Executive Order prohibiting federal

employees from texting while driving on government business

(Sherin et al., 2014)

POSITION STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN COLLEGE OF PREVENTIVE MEDICINE▪ Recommend that state legislatures ban texting while

driving while including a strong awareness campaign and comprehensive, dedicated law enforcement strategies with the legislation▪ Recommend further research into the design and

evaluation of evidence-based educational tools that can be incorporated into current driver’s licensing procedures to strengthen texting-while-driving prevention strategies

(Sherin et al., 2014)

▪ Supports providing primary care providers with the tools to educate and enhance awareness about the dangers of texting for patients of all ages▪ Advocate for conducting additional studies on the

risk of motor vehicle crashes associated with cell phone use, specifically addressing texting while driving, including the effectiveness of educational and awareness campaigns

(Sherin et al., 2014)

POSITION STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN COLLEGE OF PREVENTIVE MEDICINE

REFERENCESCDC (2015). Distracted driving. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/distracteddriving.html

Sherin, K., Lowe, A., Harvey, B., Leiva, D., Malik, A., Matthews, S., & Suh, R. (2014). Preventing texting while driving a statement of the American College of Preventive Medicine. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 47(5), 681-688.