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Costs
of preventable injuries “crippling” families,
businesses, health care system, National Safety
Council Warns
National Safety Month in June to promote “Safety
where we live, work and play”
Itasca, IL – Each year, preventable injuries
send nearly 27 million Americans to hospital emergency
rooms for treatment and another 100,000 to early
graves. The personal devastation caused by a disabling
injury or injury-related death is compounded by
costs that exceed $600 billion annually, or about
$5,700 per household.
“The costs associated with preventable
injuries are crippling individuals, families,
businesses and the health care system,” said
Alan C. McMillan, president and CEO of the National
Safety Council. “The National Safety Council
is committed to preventing and mitigating the
suffering and economic loss caused by these injuries.”
In an effort to increase awareness of these
staggering trends resulting from the risk of
serious injuries at work, in homes and communities
and on roads and highways, the National Safety
Council has announced the theme for June’s
National Safety Month observance: “Safety
where we live, work and play.”
According to “Injury Facts,” published
annually by the National Safety Council, deaths
from unintentional injuries have increased 17
percent since 1992. Unintentional injury is now
the No. 1 cause of death for people 1 to 39 years
old and the fifth leading cause of death for
all ages.
“The leading causes of preventable
death and injury – car crashes, falls, poisoning,
choking, fire, drowning and suffocation – are
especially tragic because they are preventable,” McMillan
said. “Increasing awareness of how, when,
where and to whom accidents occur is the first
step in reducing the risk of injury; the next
step is to practice proven injury prevention.”
Where
injuries occur
According to the National Safety Council, 54
percent of injury-related deaths occur in the
home or community setting; only 8 percent are
work-related.
“With more than half of the injury-related
deaths occurring in and around the home, home
is not the safe haven we think it is,” McMillan
said. “We have a greater challenge protecting
people from injury and death in the perceived
safety and comfort of their homes than in America’s
workplaces.”
How injuries occur
Motor vehicle crashes, falls, poisonings, choking,
fires, drowning and suffocation are the seven
leading causes of injury-related deaths in
the United States.
According to the National
Center for Health Statistics, of the 27 million
visits to hospital
emergency rooms for unintentional injuries in
2002:
7 million injuries were the result of falls.
4.6 million injuries were suffered in motor vehicle
crashes.
4.5 million injuries were caused by being struck
by or against an object or person.
2.5 million injuries were caused by cutting or
piercing instruments.
Who gets hurt
Data on the leading causes of nonfatal injuries
treated in hospital emergency rooms also reveals:
Motor
vehicle fatalities are highest among 15- to 19-year-olds,
with the greatest number of
fatalities occurring to drivers between 18 and
19.
Falls were the leading cause of injury-related
death for those 78 and older and the second leading
cause of death for those between 59 and 77 years
old.
Suffocation is the leading cause of death for
infants younger than1 year.
Drowning was the second leading cause of injury
death for children and adolescents between 1
and 18 years old.
Males have a higher rate of injury-related emergency
room visits than females.
Males 15-24 years old had the highest rate of
injury-related emergency room visits for males
(for whom ”struck by or against an object
or person” was the leading cause of injury).
Women older than 75 had the highest rate of injury-related
emergency room visits for females.
“
The reality is no one is immune from the risk
of injury, and the risks shift with changes in
your age, lifestyle and physical environment,” McMillan
said. “The best defense is to know the
physiological, behavioral and environmental risk
factors for serious injuries, and how to minimize
those risks throughout life.”
For more information
on injury risks and prevention information, visit
National Safety Month 2005:
Safety where we live, work and play.
The The National
Safety Council is a nonprofit, nongovernmental,
international public service
organization dedicated to protecting life and
promoting health. Members of NSC include more
than 45,000 businesses, labor organizations,
schools, public agencies, private groups and
individuals. Founded in 1913, and chartered by
the U.S. Congress in 1953, the primary focus
of the NSC is preventing injuries on highways
and in homes, workplaces and communities.
For Immediate Release,
June 1, 2005
Media Contact:
National Safety Council
630-775-2307
media@nsc.org
Related Links
U.S. Congress Resolution (.doc; 29kb) that observes
June as National Safety Month.
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June 1, 2005
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