Question

Ecological Injury Perspective

Identify a significant injury issue from an ecological perspective.  Significance is based on criteria used to describe and understand health issues: Occurrence, distribution, frequency, morbidity, mortality, and disability. Search the current literature using Google Scholar, PubMed.gov, or any other scientific article search engine to identify an intervention to address the injury issue. Discuss the expected change in the incidence of the injury as a result of the intervention.

Make sure you address the following:

Identify significant injury and describe
 Occurrence
 Distribution (geological, age, gender)
 Morbidity
 Mortality
 YPLL
 Death rate
 Disability
 Costs

Identify 2-3 EVIDENCE BASED interventions to address injury

 Google scholar
 Impact/Effectiveness
 5-8 pages

Answer 1

significant Ecological Injury: Motor vehicle injuries.

Occurrence: The occurrence of the motor vehicle accident is based on the on-scene information. It includes the driver, vehicle, environment and other associated factors. The critical reasons are crash due to the causal chain, vehicle failure, decision failure, and performance failure etc.

Distribution: About 1 million days are spent in the hospital by Americans each year due to Motor vehicle injuries. When compared to male, Female is a high risk of motor vehicle injury. Teenagers are more prone to injuries when compared with other agers.

Morbidity: Around 5 million are arrived in the emergency department due to vehicle injuries in 2012. Totally $18 billion medical costs arise in 2012 as because of vehicle injuries. Around 2 million are injured every year.

Mortality: Reducing mortality rate of motor vehicle crashes is the greatest achievements in the 20th century in the U.S. Around 32000 deaths have occurred every year due to motor vehicle accidents. In 2013, the death rate became twice. One out of three crash death occurs due to speed and drunken drive.

Deaths: 9500 deaths are occurred by not using seat belts and speeding. 10,000 deaths are due to drunk and driving.

Year of potential Life Lost: Injuries due to Motor vehicle crashes contributes to 55% of all YPLL. Totally 491 injuries are related to motor vehicle crashes per 100,000of all YPLL. Motor vehicle injuries are five times higher than the other unintentional injuries.

Disability: Motor vehicle injury is the most common injury related disability. Around 1.2 million adults are disabled due to motor vehicle injuries every year and they are living at home. 41% are unable to do the job due to motor vehicle crashes.

Costs: Lifetime medical costs are around $ 18 billion. An estimated costs of work lost due to motor vehicle injuries $33 billion. Emergency visit costs are $3300 and hospitalization costs related to injuries is $57000 in an individual lifetime.

Interventions:

• Consider the increasing use of seat belts, booster seats will improve the safety of driving among teenagers.
• Support the traffic laws and presence of police at the checkpoints.
• Use of proper seat belt for the children.
• Use GDL system to improve skills of the drivers.
• Use of ignition interlocks device.
• Improve the vehicle safety measures.
• Maintain legal age for the drinking to avoid drink and drive.