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 Automatic Collision Notification
There is now general agreement in trauma management that there is a short window of opportunity — the time in which it is necessary to transport a trauma victim to skilled attention in a specialist unit accustomed to dealing with trauma in order to maximise their chances of survival (Amos, 1993). In one study, Sampalis, Lavoie, Williams, Mulder and Kalina (1993) found that total prehospital time over 60 minutes was associated with a three times greater risk of dying. This can represent a 'golden hour'.
Champion, Augenstein, Cushing, Digges, Hunt, Larkin, Malliaris, Sacco and Siegel (1998) proposed that an Automatic Collision Notification (ACN) system has the potential to significantly improve emergency medical responses and thus, outcomes for many injured patients. The ACN would comprise a crash recorder which collects crash impact data, an automobile location system and a cellular phone system which sends the crash and location data to the emergency medical system. They note that systems with some or all of these features are currently or will soon be available. However, it may be that sending information about the likely severity of injuries directly to the emergency medical services, rather than notification per se, that has the greatest potential to improve the outcome for the injured occupants. The early response may be particularly important for crashes in rural areas. Li, Doong, Huang, Lai and Jeng (2009) found that there were more fatalities in rural areas compared with urban areas in Taiwan and recommended that one approach would be to have facilitated an earlier medical response.
Information sourced from A review of potential countermeasures for motorcycle and scooter safety across APEC (Full report and References [PDF, 304KB]). |
