Volume 16, 4
Summer 2013
The AIPN is a professional organisa on bringing together all Australians and New Zealanders concerned with injury issues. Please feel free to contact us for more informa on. AIPN undertakes to collate informa on from contributors, and has not been responsible for the research reported in this newsle er.
Inside this edition
President’s report
1
Injury preven on during the fes ve
season
2
2013 AIPN Conference
3
2013 AIPN Conference awards
5
Congratula ons Jan Shield, recipient of the inaugural AIPN Life me Membership
6
World Report on Disability
7
Spinal cord injury
8
Violence preven on: The evidence
9
Preven ng child injury
9
Don’t change helmet laws
10
Stay Safe newsle er available
10
Faces behind the ﬁgures
11
TEACH-VIP
11
Amazing cupcakes to celebrate the fes ve season
12
President’s Report
Dear AIPN members, Happy New Year to you all! I really enjoy this time of year because it is a time to re-energise, to take stock of what we’ve done (individually and collectively), and what remains to be achieved – personally and professionally. The field of injury prevention is entering a period of significant change. As you may already know, the current Injury Prevention Plan is due for revision this year. The AIPN are partnering with the Injury Prevention Special Interest Group of the Public Health Association (PHAA-IPSIG) to hold a series of workshops to develop the new plan. Two workshops have already been held (Melbourne, and Fremantle). In the coming months, there will be workshops in Brisbane, Adelaide and Sydney. The final forum will be held in Canberra. This is your chance to have a say, and to make a difference in the next national plan. It is our collective responsibility to describe a way forward for injury prevention in Australia, so I strongly encourage you to participate in at least one of these workshops. Keep your eye out for more information on these workshops in our newsletters, e-bulletins, and on the AIPN website (http://www.aipn.com.au/ ). In November we held the 11th Australasian Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion Conference in Fremantle, in partnership with KidsafeWA and the Injury Control Council of Western Australia. I was heartened to see so many of you at the conference, which was certainly a highlight of the year for me, and I hope for you too. As I mentioned in my opening address at the conference, the AIPN conference is my favourite. More than any other, this conference is about coming together and learning from each other. It is an opportunity for us to engage with each other, and to share knowledge. Our work in injury prevention can be very satisfying, but it can also be challenging. So for me, the AIPN conference was a chance for us to acknowledge and celebrate each other, and also our work, in preventing injury and improving safety throughout Australia. Thank you to all of you for your continued energy, passion, commitment, and persistence. I am sure those of you who attended the conference will agree that we certainly celebrated with flapping style! Australian Injury Prevention Network
Incorporated in Victoria
ABN 23 676 617 704
AIPN Website: www.aipn.com.au
AIPN Secretariat
PO Box 21211
Little Lonsdale Street
MELBOURNE VIC 8011
Email: [email protected]
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President’s Report continued...
I would like to sincerely thank KidsafeWA, ICCWA and all members of the Conference Organising Committee (including the social committee) for their hard work. Special thanks also must go to Melita Leeds, for her unwavering commitment to ensuring the outstanding success of the conference. I would also like to once again acknowledge the support of the conference sponsors: Lotterywest;; Woodside;; the WA Department of Health , the Department of Local Government and Communities, the Australian Safe Communities Foundation, the Victorian Safe Communities Network;; and the RAC. The generous support of these sponsors ensured that we could facilitate this event. The conference programme itself was informative and stimulating (thanks to the Scientific Committee!), and we heard from five auspicious and inspirational keynote speakers, all international experts in their respective fields (Professor John Pearn, Dr Holly Hedegaard, Karyn McLuskey, Professor Kathleen Clapham, and Professor Fiona Wood). I personally found the story generously shared by Symon Still about his experience with the true cost of traumatic injury very moving. Thank you to all of the speakers – and to you, the conference attendees. Without you there would be no conference! Finally, I would like to acknowledge the worthy recipients of the 2013 AIPN awards given at the Conference dinner. See more about these awards elsewhere in this newsletter.
At the AGM which was held during the conference in Fremantle, some longstanding members of the AIPN Exec resigned. These were Sue Wicks (Treasurer), Professor Ann Williamson (Member), and Nancy Pepper. I would like to acknowledge the contribution made by these outgoing members, particularly Ann and Sue who have both contributed substantially to the AIPN Exec behind the scenes over the years, and also to the injury prevention agenda nationally. Thank you! We very happily welcome the new members of the Exec – Lara Harvey, Christine Erskine, and Sheree Bekker (student rep). I hope you are all well-rested and that you are looking forward to 2014 with as much enthusiasm as I am. We have a big year ahead of us – there is so much to do! As always, we welcome your feedback and contributions.
Stay safe and happy
Kerrianne Wa (kerrianne.wa @jcu.edu.au)
Injury prevention during the festive season
The fes ve season or the injury season?
A representa ve of St George Hospital in NSW advises "Our emergency department usually experiences an increase in presenta ons of up to 40 per cent during the Christmas and New Year period." Common injuries we hope you have managed to avoid include those involving water (and especially pools); breaks, sprains and strains which may result from using Christmas presents such as scooters and trampolines; burns; and cuts (especially when opening gi s!). Apparently hanging Christmas decora ons is par cularly risky! (read more about this injury preven on issue at h p://
www.medicaldaily.com/holiday-decora ng-injuries-rise-when-stringing-christmas-lights-lands-you-er-264564 Page 2
2013 AIPN Conference
Australian Injury Preven on Network Conference, 11-13 November 2013, Fremantle.
The 11th AIPN conference held in Fremantle in November was a wonderful opportunity for anyone in the ﬁeld of injury preven on across Australasia. Here are some of the conference highlights:
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2013 AIPN Conference
Hot on the heels of the 11th AIPN Conference, the AIPN Execu ve looks forward to announcing the date and venue of the 12th AIPN Conference in the new year. Be sure to mark your diaries when this announcement is made!
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2013 AIPN Conference Awards
AIPN Awards presented during the 2013 Conference A number of awards were also presented during the November conference: Best Policy and Prac ce Oral Presenta on: Lynne Bilston; Development of Evidence-Based Guidelines for Child Motor Vehicle Passenger Restraint Use
Best Research Oral Presenta on: Dr Rebecca Mitchell; Acute Care and predictors of higher treatment costs for major paediatric in NSW
Peoples’ Choice Poster: A/Prof Richard Franklin (pictured right); I don’t like dogs that bite
Best Poster: Angela Clapperton; Trends in self-harm hospitalisa ons, Victoria, 1998/99 – 2011/12
Student Prize: Michelle Hobday; The eﬀect of Alcohol outlets and sale on alcohol related injuries presen ng to emergency departments in Perth, Australia from 2002-2010. The AIPN also presented Awards at the Conference Dinner, as follows:
Life Membership of the AIPN: Jan Shield
Life me Contribu on in Injury Preven on: Professor John Pearn
Award for Achievement in Research in Injury Preven on and Safety Promo on : A/Prof Belinda Gabbe
Award for Sustained Achievement in Injury Preven on: Professor Rebecca Ivers
Pam Albany Memorial: Award for Contribu on to Policy in Injury Preven on and Safety: Sue Wicks
For AIPN Newsle er readers, here is Sue’s belated speech: There are only a few mes in my life where I have been rendered completely speechless and the evening of Tuesday 12th November – the Conference dinner - was one of those mes. Being named as the recipient of the inaugural Pam Albany Award for Injury Preven on Policy and Prac ce was so completely unexpected that I literally could ﬁnd no words in my head to be able to properly express my thanks and how honoured I felt to be presented with this award. Now that I have recovered my powers of speech, I‘d like to oﬀer the thanks I was too dumbstruck on the night to do. My sincerest thanks go to the AIPN Execu ve for thinking me worthy of this award – how you managed to keep this a total secret is astounding! I’d like to thank Chris Albany for being there to present the inaugural Pam Albany Award for Injury Preven on Policy and Prac ce. I am very honoured and humbled to have received this award – Pam made a huge contribu on to injury preven on policy and prac ce in Australia during her life me and this is a big legacy to live up to. Finally thank you to everyone who came to congratulate me over the course of the evening and the next day; I was overwhelmed by all your warm wishes and I hope I was somewhat coherent in my speech by then. Thank you Sue Wicks
Well done, Sue!
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Congratulations Jan Shield, recipient of the inaugural
AIPN Lifetime Membership
The AIPN wishes to acknowledge Jan Shield’s contribu ons to the ﬁeld of injury preven on by awarding a life me membership, the ﬁrst to be oﬀered by the AIPN. The following was contributed by Barbara Minuzzo:
Jan is an extraordinary human being. I have known Jan since January 1995, mee ng her a few years a er the start of her career in the safety promo on and injury preven on ﬁeld, which now spans over 3 decades. Her impact has been so pervasive it is hard to know where to start in summarising and acknowledging her contribu ons. Her achievements in the Safe Communi es sphere have been at mul ple levels including community educa on, governance and policy. In this, Jan went beyond the call of duty. Jan was one of a small group of people that, following the Interna onal Safe Communi es Conference held in Melbourne in 1996, turned dreams into reality by joining the Australian Injury Preven on Network (AIPN) and the Victorian Safe Communi es Network (VSCN) and assis ng to get these up and running. Both networks are s ll going strong. Her consistent voluntary involvement and her ongoing input into both of these networks has been breathtaking. Her contribu on and passion on injury preven on networks and commi ees both as a leader/
convener or as an organising commi ee member have helped ensure the implementa on, development, evalua on and sustainability of many innova ve ini a ves.
She has also been a driving force behind various systema c approaches to bringing about sustainable environmental changes: through her work at the Royal Children’s Hospital Safety Centre, Vic ms Referral and Assistance Service, and Crime Preven on Victoria. Jan was instrumental in managing the ﬁnal stage of a aining accredita on for the Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne, as an Interna onally Accredited Aﬃliate Support Centre.
Jan has also been ac ve as a publisher and editor of 40 issues of a current awareness bulle n, provided contribu ons to the Injury Preven on journal, and been a peer reviewer for other interna onal journals. In addi on, she has presented many papers at na onal and interna onal conferences. Jan has also facilitated many workshops over the years for both the VSCN and AIPN. In her work and the organisa ons she has inﬂuenced, Jan has always fostered a collegial approach and worked to ensure establishment of collabora ve partnerships with whole-of-organisa on approaches. Her commitment and extensive knowledge in safety promo on and injury preven on has earned her immense respect and recogni on both in Australia and worldwide as well as being acknowledged through awards, including the AIPN Award for Excellence in Prac ce in 2006. Cont.
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Congratulations Jan Shield, recipient of the inaugural
AIPN Lifetime Membership
Cont. For me and for many others, Jan has been a signiﬁcant mentor, always ready to lead and guide us in our projects and careers, being the ‘go to' person always there to give direc on. I would like to acknowledge Jan’s very special personal quali es. Jan has always demonstrated an ability to ‘go with the ﬂow’ in really tough professional mes. She has always taken an approach that supports others, very gently building on an idea you came to her with, to expand it and make it even be er while always ensuring you felt like it was s ll your idea. This she did without taking any accolades away from others. I have been both blessed and privileged to have had the pleasure to work with Jan as she is a true tan in the ﬁeld. Jan re red from paid safety promo on work in April 2011 but her volunteering on various commi ees s ll con nues. Jan is an inspira on.
As an individual who is a commi ed visionary and who operates from a place of compassion, authen city and integrity, Jan is an inspira on.
Barbara
L to R, Jan Shield, Lynne Galan , Barbara Minuzzo, h p://www.vscn.org.au/blog/
World report on disability
More than a billion people around the world experience disability.
People with disabili es have generally poorer health, lower educa on achievements, fewer economic opportuni es and higher rates of poverty than people without disabili es. This is largely due to the lack of services available to them and the many obstacles they face in their everyday lives. The report provides the best available evidence about what works to overcome barriers to health care, rehabilita on, educa on, employment, and support services, and to create the environments which will enable people with disabili es to ﬂourish. The report ends with a concrete set of recommended ac ons for governments and their partners. This pioneering World report on disability will make a signiﬁcant contribu on to implementa on of the Conven on on the Rights of Persons with Disabili es. At the intersec on of public health, human rights and development, the report is set to become a "must have" resource for policymakers, service providers, professionals, and advocates for people with disabili es and their families. Read the report at h p://www.who.int/disabili es/world_report/2011/en/index.html Page 7
Spinal cord injury: “Preventable, survivable, and need not preclude
good health and social inclusion”
Between 250,000 and 500,000 people receive a spinal cord injury each year, and survival rates are worse in low– and middle-income countries. Up to 90% of spinal cord injury cases are due to trauma c causes such as road traﬃc crashes, falls and violence. Road traﬃc crashes are the main contributor to spinal cord injury in most countries. In the African Region, for example, nearly 70% of spinal cord injury cases are the result of road traﬃc crashes, while in the Western Paciﬁc Region road traﬃc crashes account for 55% of spinal cord injury cases. Many of the consequences associated with spinal cord injury do not result from the condi on itself, but from inadequate medical care and rehabilita on services, and from barriers in the physical, social and policy environments that exclude people with spinal cord injury from par cipa on in their communi es. The Global Plan for the Decade of Ac on for Road Safety 20112020 calls for improved post-crash care, including appropriate emergency treatment and longer-term rehabilita on for road traﬃc crash vic ms. The Global Plan for the Decade of Ac on also urges governments to put measures in place to make roads and vehicles safe, and ensure that laws and enforcement encourage road users to avoid key risks, such as drinking and driving and speeding and failing to use motorcycle helmets, seat-belts and child restraints. Such ac ons will contribute to reducing spinal cord injury. "Spinal cord injury is a medically complex and life-disrup ng condi on," notes Dr E enne Krug, Director of the Department of Violence and Injury Preven on and Disability, WHO. "However, spinal cord injury is preventable, survivable, and need not preclude good health and social inclusion." Essen al measures for improving the survival, health and par cipa on of people with spinal cord injury include: Timely, appropriate pre-hospital management: quick recogni on of suspected spinal cord injury, rapid evalua on and ini a on of injury management, including immobiliza on of the spine.
Acute care appropriate to the level and severity of injury, degree of instability and presence of neural compression.
Access to ongoing health care, health educa on and products such as catheters to reduce risk of secondary condi ons and improve quality of life.
Access to skilled rehabilita on and mental health services to maximize func oning, independence, overall well-being and community integra on.
Access to appropriate assis ve devices that can enable people to perform everyday ac vi es, reducing func onal limita ons and dependency.
Specialized knowledge and skills among providers of medical care and rehabilita on services.
The new World Health Organiza on report, Interna onal perspec ves on spinal cord injury, summarizes the best available evidence on the causes, preven on, care and lived experience of people with spinal cord injury. Read the report h p://www.who.int/disabili es/policies/spinal_cord_injury/en/ Page 8
Violence prevention:The evidence
What works to prevent violence? WHO and Liverpool John Moores University launched Violence preven on: the evidence, an eight-part series of brieﬁngs on the evidence for interven ons to prevent interpersonal and self-directed violence. By spotligh ng evidence for the eﬀec veness of interven ons, Violence preven on: the evidence provides clear direc ons for how violence preven on funders, policy makers and programme implementers can boost the impact of their violence preven on eﬀorts.
You can either download the seven brieﬁngs and the overview in an all-in-one document or download them each separately from h p://www.who.int/violence_injury_preven on/violence/4th_milestones_mee ng/
publica ons/en/index.html Violence preven on evidence base and resources
This website provides an evidence-based resource for policy makers, prac oners, and others working to prevent violence. It includes a searchable data base of abstracts from published studies that measure the eﬀec veness of interven ons to prevent child abuse, elder abuse, in mate partner violence, sexual violence and youth violence; key publica ons and resources on violence and its preven on; news and updates from the ﬁeld of violence preven on; and links to relevant organiza ons. See h p://www.preventviolence.info/
Preventing child injury
Online child injury preven on course: resources now available
This course describes preven on of child injury from a global perspec ve. It provides an overview of injury as a public health problem, the burden of child injury and the challenges and opportuni es to implement strategies to prevent child injury. The course focuses on ﬁve key injury mechanisms and the principles of child injury preven on. The aim of this course is to provide par cipants with the knowledge basis relevant to the following:
recognize the innate developmental diﬀerences of children and how these characteris cs relate to a child’s vulnerability and increased injury risk;
deﬁne the scope of child injury and describe epidemiologic trends based on age, gender and social determinants;
understand principles of child injury preven on methodology and approaches;
iden fy the ﬁve main mechanisms of child injury, and their associated risks, preven on strategies and examples of eﬀec ve interven ons;
describes obstacles and priori es within preven on of child injury.
This course is designed for individuals and organiza ons ac vely engaged in developing and implemen ng policies or programmes that primarily target or secondarily impact the preven on of child injury. It is also relevant for individuals or organiza ons providing ﬁnancial or logis c support for child injury preven on programmes, individuals working in sectors relevant to the preven on of child injury (e.g. educa on, social services, etc.) or individuals working in the provision of care for injured children.
The course is designed to be delivered over 3-4 days. Access the course at h p://www.who.int/
violence_injury_preven on/capacitybuilding/courses/child_injury/en/index.html
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Don’t change helmet laws
Helmet laws aren't broken - why ﬁx them?
Two of Australasia's peak associa ons for road safety and preven on of trauma, the Australasian College of Road Safety (ACRS) and the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS), have joined forces to call for the Queensland Government to maintain current regula ons which recognise the signiﬁcantly increased risk of head injury to cyclists who do not wear bicycle helmets.
This joint statement comes in response to a recent Queensland Parliamentary Commi ee Report which recommends a 24-month exemp on from bicycle helmet laws for cyclists aged 16 years and over riding in parks, on footpaths, shared or exclusive bike paths, or roads with speed limits of 60km/h or under.
ACRS President Lauchlan McIntosh AM noted that the Parliamentary Commi ee report is deeply concerning for all members of the community. "I encourage the Queensland Government to con nue its good work in improving road safety in many areas,” he said. “To support this recommenda on would be an aberra on in this Government's good standing, and would be a decision in strong opposi on to expert opinion from researchers and trauma surgeons." Dr Richard Lewandowski from the RACS QLD Trauma Commi ee, stated that: "300 bike riders could each have a simple event or fall, and simply because they were wearing a helmet, they will get up, brush themselves oﬀ and con nue on their way. “And no sta s cian will ever hear about it. But change the law and have one cyclist, not wearing a helmet, suﬀer permanent brain damage or die in a simple, low-speed fall, and everyone will hear about it," said Dr Lewandowski. "Helmet laws aren’t broken – don’t ﬁx them."
Professor Narelle Haworth from QUT's Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety - QLD (CARRS-Q) said: "head injuries are among the most horriﬁc injuries to suﬀer from. “Our data suggests that if the Commi ee's recommenda on was implemented, then the total number of head injuries from bicycle crashes in Queensland could increase by up to 60 per cent."
The ACRS, RACS and CARRS-Q would like to support the work of the QLD Government, in this UN Decade of Ac on on Road Safety, to help reduce the crash and trauma rate. The Complete QLD Parliamentary Commi ee Report can be downloaded here. For the AIPN Posi on Paper on Pedal Cycle Helmets, see the AIPN website.
Stay Safe newsletter available
Victorian Burns Preven on Partnership (VBBP) : Stay Safe Burn injury is a signiﬁcant component of the overall burden of injury in Australia with approximately 50,000 burns related hospital admissions per year.
The VBPP commenced in 2009 and has con nued to produce a seasonal ‘Stay Safe’ newsle er. The most recent newsle er covers topics such as preven ng hair straightener burns, the common causes of burn injury in Australian children, ﬁrst aid myths for burn injuries, and advice on how you can protect yourself and your property during grassﬁres. The VBPP aims to reduce the number of burn injuries and fatali es especially among children. With 79 per cent of child burn injuries occurring in the home, a lot can be done to prevent such injuries or minimise the extent of the injury. To view the latest Stay Safe newsle er. h p://www.rch.org.au/safetycentre/
for_health_professionals/ Page 10
Faces behind the figures……….
Voices of road traﬃc crash vic ms and their families
The World Health Organiza on and the Associa on for Safe Interna onal Road Travel have jointly developed a book en tled "Faces behind the ﬁgures: voices of road traﬃc crash vic ms and their families", to put a human face on the sta s cs presented in the many road safety reports published around the world.
The stories demonstrate the physical, psychological, emo onal and economic devasta on that results from road traﬃc injuries. These stories deepen our understanding of the enormous suﬀering behind each of the 1.2 million deaths and 50 million injuries every year. Despite the losses experienced, a number of the aﬀected vic ms and their families used this tragedy to ini ate ac vi es to promote road safety in their countries and around the world. We remind readers that the handful of stories in this book represent only a minuscule frac on of the lives lost, families sha ered, and countless others hurt around the world by this epidemic.
The cries of pain in this book are echoed a million mes a year, over 3 000 mes a day. They are a call for ac on – and they demand a response. We hope that individuals, organiza ons and governmental agencies can use these stories to raise public awareness, capture media a en on and help create a poli cal and social environment that will not tolerate inac on and will demand road safety improvement. Access this publica on at h p://who.int/violence_injury_preven on/road_traﬃc/
ac vi es/faces/en/index.html TEACH-VIP
Training, Educa on and Advancing Collabora on in Health on Violence and Injury Preven on resources available online. WHO coordinated the development of a global curriculum for injury preven on and control. The curriculum, know as TEACH-VIP (, is provided in its en rety on CD-ROM. TEACH-VIP is a comprehensive injury preven on and control curriculum which has been developed through the eﬀorts of WHO and a network of global injury preven on experts. Access this resource, and other violence and injury preven on resources, at h p://www.who.int/violence_injury_preven on/publica ons/capacitybuilding/en/index.html Page 11
Amazing cupcakes to celebrate the festive season!
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AUSTRALIAN INJURY
PREVENTION NETWORK
The Na onal peak body for all age and all cause injury preven on and control in Australia
AIPN EXECUTIVE COMMI TTEE 2013
Kerrianne Wa (President)
kerrianne.wa @jcu.edu.au
Alexia Lennon (Secretary)
[email protected]
Lara Harvey (Treasurer)
[email protected] Erica Davison
[email protected]
Tim Driscoll
[email protected]
[email protected]
Kirsten Vallmuur
[email protected]
Sophie Pointer
Sophie.Pointer@ﬂinders.edu.au Bridie Sco -Parker (Editor)
[email protected]
bsco [email protected] The Australian Injury Preven on Network welcomes people from a wide range of backgrounds who have an interest in injury preven on and safety promo on. The AIPN oﬀers 5 membership types covering most individual and corporate needs.
Rebecca Ivers Chris ne Erskine
JOIN AIPN
To apply for or renew your membership, please go to the website to download a membership form or complete your applica on online.
www.aipn.com.au
C O N TAC T A I P N
AIPN Secretariat
C/- Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety, Queensland (CARRS-Q)
Queensland University of Technology
K Block, 130 Victoria Park Road
Kelvin Grove C O N T R I BU T I O N S
Do you have any ar cles, news, stories or informa on on injury preven on research, publica ons or ac vi es?
For inclusion in the Autumn edi on of the newsle er, please submit any ar cles, news or stories to the Newsle er Editor Dr Bridie Sco -Parker at newsle [email protected] by 5 March 2014.
Queensland, 4059
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.aipn.com.au This edi on of Injury Incidence has been edited by Bridie Sco -Parker with acknowledgment to Clare Murray.
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