The truth hurts doesn’t it?
This is the last of my series of 4 articles for Brain Injury Awareness month and in this one I have pulled together some hard facts on the rate of preventable injuries in Canada, both unintentional and intentional, that will shock you. These statistics paint a grim picture of just why it’s so important that we all make injury prevention a priority each and every day of our life. The impacts of injury go beyond the human toll with there also being many significant societal, economical and medical impacts that we often don’t stop to think about.
1 child dies every 9 minutes in Canada due to a preventable injury!
Did you know that injury is the #1 killer of Canadians aged 1-44 years?
Close to 16,000 Canadians die each year due to a preventable injury.
This works out to 43 deaths each day and it’s estimated to increase to 71 deaths a day by 2035 unless we take action NOW.
The Cost of Injury to Canada 2015 report was just released and if the data in it doesn’t give a huge wake up call to all Canadians than I don’t know what will. In reading through it I quickly realized just how poor of a job we, Canadians, are doing when it comes to making an effort to prevent injuries, not just for ourselves but for all those around us.
The statistics are alarming and here are just a few in the 177 page report that made me jump out of my chair:
On a daily basis more than 10,000 Canadians are injured seriously enough to require medical attention.
Of this, 9,573 (93%) are seen in emergency rooms, 43 (.04%) die, 634 (6%) are hospitalized and 165 (1.6%) are left partially or totally disabled.
Injuries come with a heavy price tag, costing Canadians more than $26.8 billion in total economic costs in 2010, with direct costs being $15,890 billion and indirect costs $10,906 billion. The majority of costs, 82.5% are attributable to unintentional injuries as opposed to intentional (violence, self-harm). If the past trend continues the picture becomes even bleaker:
As a Canadian, and a contributing taxpayer, I know there are so many places this amount of money could be better spent, our educational system and programs to help eradicate poverty being just two of them. Many of us are quick to complain on just how much we are taxed and often voice that we don’t feel we are seeing a great deal of value in where our tax dollars are going. The good news is we are not powerless when it comes to creating a new reality when it comes to the cost of injuries.
“Many of our choices have led to the predicaments we are presently complaining about.” –Monica Johnson
Every day we go about our lives makes choices, whether it’s ordering off a menu, shopping for a new outfit or making a large purchase such as a car or house.
I believe we now have an opportunity in front of us to start making different choices than those we are already making when it comes to personal safety, myself included.
You have the ability to make a choice today that will bring you closer to living a long, happy and healthy life that will move you further away from being one of the 10,000 people in Canada each day who will be seeking medical attention due to an injury.
The numbers I’ve shared above don’t lie, there is definite room for improvement here.
Below are a few examples of the impact small changes can make to the overall picture:
– Every dollar spent on a childproof cigarette lighter saves society $80.
– Every dollar spent on a booster seat saves society $71.
– Every dollar spent on a bicycle helmet saves society $45.
– Every dollar spent on a child safety seat saves society $42.
– Every dollar spent on a fire alarm saves society $18.
How do you plan to contribute to reversing this trend? I welcome your comments below.
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