'92% of children who suffered injuries in accidents in Bahrain were not wearing seat belts'

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Did you know that, in Bahrain, seat belts are compulsory for passengers in a moving vehicle? The law also states that small children and babies must be seated in the back of the vehicle.

And yet, new research by the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland - Medical University in Bahrain has found that only 7.7% of the children wear the set belts while the vehicle is in motion.

The study, which highlights the dangers of not adhering to basic safety measures, finds, “For children who were in car accidents, 92.3% were not wearing seatbelts, and this caused 12.8% of the children to eject from the cabin of their vehicles.” The research assessed the condition of 1,328 children under the age of 14 who had visited the emergency departments of hospitals for trauma care.

Out of the total cases, 753 were victims of fall injuries, and 79 were involved in car accidents or struck by vehicles.

The rest of the children suffered a variety of other injuries. Six of the children, at the emergency wings, were victims of drowning or near-drowning.

The three-month study also reveals that six children lost their lives during the study period from trauma related to either road traffic accidents or drowning.

Based on the finding, the study calls for wearing seatbelts while in moving vehicles to save lives during accidents. The study also urges parents and children to remain cautious and obey traffic rules, pedestrian signals and to use sidewalks to avoid accidents.

Emergency Departments of Salmaniya Medical Complex (SMC), King Hamad University Hospital (KHUH) and Bahrain Defence Force Hospital (BDF) were part of the study aimed at understanding the leading causes and trends of paediatric trauma in Bahrain.

As for water activities, researchers observe that drownings are avoidable by maintaining constant adult supervision, pool isolation and installing fences.

The study also advises using personal flotation devices and proper swimming training. President of RCSI Bahrain, Professor Sameer Otoom, said: “The research conducted by our students, and supported by professionals and healthcare workers from our partner hospitals, showed that adhering to simple measures can have a great impact on the lives of children and their families.” He added: “At RCSI Bahrain, we recognise the importance of constant research to enhance patient care as well as contribute to spreading awareness on preventative measures to improve people’s lives in Bahrain and beyond.” Jay C. Liu Jr, a senior student from the School of Medicine, led the study along with Ayesha Zaidi, Aieshah A. Ismael, Ban W. Sha’ban and Brock Tompkins. Professor and Chairman of the Department of Surgery at RCSI Bahrain, Professor Martin Corbally, supervised the study.