National Safety Month Aims to Reduce Preventable Injuries and Deaths in Alabama, Elsewhere

Jun 4, 2011 - Personal Injury by Cross & Smith

Businesses, communities and residents are urged to join the month-long celebration of National Safety Month. The National Safety Council aims to use this month to raise awareness about the top causes of preventable deaths and injuries in Alabama and elsewhere throughout the country.

The Council looks to educate residents about safe behaviors that can be practiced to help keep you and your loved ones safe this summer.

Our Alabama personal injury attorneys ask that all residents enjoy their summer vacation time safely. There are a number of ways to get injured during these hot summer months.

The National Safety Council will focus each week on the different leading causes of these unintentional injuries and deaths.

The schedule is as follows:

–Summertime Safety, June 1 to 4 – As summer is traditionally a time where we see an increased number of unintentional injuries and deaths, this time will be used to address these different causes and will focus on a variety of summer safety topics, including pool and spa drownings.

–Preventing Overexertion, June 5 to 11 – Overexertion is the 3rd leading cause of these unintentional injuries that are treated at hospitals. The most common cause of these injuries are strains and sprains, more commonly to the lower back.

–Teen Driving Safety, June 12 to 18 – Focusing on the driving skills of our teen drivers is critical in making our roadways safer. Every year, more than 5,500 people are killed in accidents that involve a teen driver, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

–Preventing Slips, Trips and Falls, June 19 to 25 – Falls are one of the country’s top causes of unintentional injuries that are treated in emergency hospital departments. People 55 and older are more prone to becoming victims of these dangerous falls.

–On the Road, Off the Phone, June 26 to 30 – Motor-vehicle accidents continue to be the country’s number one cause of unintentional death. A major contributing factor to these accidents is distracted driving. The National Safety Council estimates that more than 20 percent of all motor-vehicle accidents involve the use of a cell phone use behind the wheel.

Unintentional injuries and deaths in the United States are at unbelievable levels, and this demonstrates the need for the observance of National Safety Month. Unintentional fatalities reached about 128,200 in 2009, the highest on record. This statistic is nearly 50 percent greater than the 1992 total of 86,777. It was during that year that our country experienced the lowest annual total since 1924. The total cost of these unintentional injuries and deaths is more than $693 billion nationally. Americans and their employers pick up the tab for these injuries – $5,900 per household.