Question

1) From Low to Middle Income countries, which are the leading causes of unintentional injuries in males? Females?

2) Explain each of the three components of Haddon’s Matrix.

3) List at three measures that could be used to decrease road traffic injuries

4) Which gender is most at risk from dying from poisoning from the following age groups in low-middle income countries: - Under 5= - 5-14= 5) List some of the risk factors for falls in the following groups in low-middle income countries: -

Young individuals=

- Older individuals=

Answer 1

1. The middle-income countries we are considering here can be considered as developing countries where economies of the countries are in developing state meaning that the state of the art infrastructure is not available to the residents of the country. Hence due to underdeveloped resources, there are many areas which can be responsible for giving up unintentional injuries to males or females of that particular country. Specifically for males, the unintentional injuries could be from construction activities, road accidents, poor infrastructure or agricultural practices to name a few. For the female population, the unintentional injuries could be due to household chores, vehicle accidents etc. These mentioned areas can be considered to be the leading causes of unintentional injuries for the male and female populations of the countries with income in the middle-level band.

2. Haddon's matrix deals with Injury prevention. The matrix shows us the three factors and explains them in Three phases which are pre-crash, crash and post-crash phases. The 3 factors which the Matrix talks about are personal factors, Agent factors, and Environmental factors. We talk in detail about all the 3 factors as listed below,

1. Personal Factors (Human Factors):
   It deals with the information and attitude of the humans in pre-crash and then talks about the medical facilities in the crash period and then evaluates the post-crash period further. This factor talks about prevention of the injuries in dealing with the human element of the situation.
2. Agent Factors:
   These factors are aimed at implementing precautions and measures so as to reduce any risk of injuries. This talks about how to notify so as to minimize the frequency of injuries. showcasing speed limits, road safety measures on roads are an example of this factors of Haddon's matrix.
3. Environmental Factors:
   This aspect of the Haddon's matrix deals with how the infrastructure is designed so as to reduce the risk of injuries. For example, the banking of roads, speed limits, construction quality are some of the factors which explain the environmental factors of the Haddon's matrix

Hence, Haddon's matrix basically tells us about how to prevent injuries by taking care of all the factors mentioned in the matrix.

3. Three measure to reduce road traffic injuries are listed as follows:

1. Lane system to be observed for particular type of vehicles. Vehicles with particular speed limit should drive in the lane assigned to them. This will enable smooth flow of traffic without any disturbances to the fast traveling vehicles and hence reducing the risk of traffic Injuries.
2. Cover the roadsides with pavements to restrict stray animals from entering the roads and causing confusion among drivers leading to road traffic accidents.
3. Implementing strict traffic rules and signals wherever required to control the flow of traffic and distribute it evenly to cause congestion and hence traffic injuries.

These are the 3 measure which can be taken to reduce the road traffic injuries.

4. The female gender can be at more risk in lower/ middle-income countries.The risk factors for the younger population can be not getting adequate nutrition which is necessary for their healthy growth. Unavailability of healthy atmosphere for them to grow or not having adequate medical facilities pertaining to the younger population. For older population the lack of supporting homes for the old people and also the high quality medical facilities require to treat them at affordable prices may not be available. The affordability of consulting the doctors for their care can be the biggest drawback for older people in middle income countries.