Texting While Driving is a Distraction – Don’t Do It!

OMG!  Get the Message.                                                           
                                           
Texting while driving is a deadly distraction.                                     
                   

“Very often, we know when a trauma patient has been drinking and driving. 
 However, texting and driving related accidents are clearly underreported. 
I was shocked to learn how much texting delays one’s reaction time.  While I am, like many others, enamored with this technological communications breakthrough, it is too dangerous in regards to public safety to combine texting and driving.  Don’t get the message.”                 
                                                            
Jeffrey M. Smith, M.D.
Orthopaedic Traumatologist
Orthopaedic Trauma & Fracture Specialists Medical Corp.

The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) has joined forces with the Orthopaedic Trauma Association (OTA) on a public service announcement urging drivers to NEVER text while driving.  Simply put, texting is a deadly distraction that can cause accidents, severe orthopaedic traumas or even worse, death.  Orthopaedic surgeons not only treat, but want to prevent accidental traumas from occurring in the first place.  This ad is the first step in educating the public in what has become a commonplace practice among drivers.  Spread the word, save a friend.

Get the Facts!
The National Safety Council (NCS) estimates that nearly 28 percent of crashes – about 1.6 million a year – can be attributed to cell phone talking and texting while driving. 

In addition, general statistics on distracted driving are startling:

  • 80 percent of all crashes and 65 percent of near crashes involve some type of distraction. (Source: Virginia Tech 100-car study for NHTSA)
  • Nearly 6,000 people died in 2008 in crashes involving a distracted or inattentive driver, and more than half a million were injured. (NHTSA)
  • The worst offenders are the youngest and least-experienced drivers: men and women under 20 years of age. (NHTSA)
  • Drivers who use hand-held devices are four times as likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure themselves. (Source: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)

Tips to Avoid Distracted Driving:

  • The AAOS and OTA encourage all drivers to pull over to use a cell phone, but if you must answer the phone, use a hands-free device. 
  • Do not dial phone numbers on a cell phone, send or read text messages while driving.
  • When in the car, set up a "driving" profile on your smartphone, which switches off text alerts and silences the phone. (This is a function on the Blackberry that can be easily selected from the home screen).
  • To listen to the radio, use the volume and station buttons on the steering wheel, instead of reaching for the center counsel.
  • Before you depart, load compact discs in the player or set up a pre-selected playlist on an mp 3 player.
  • Enter an address in the navigation system before you depart or while in park.

Other Resources and More Information                                               

American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS)

Your Orthopaedic Connection – driving safety tips

National Safety Council – distracted driving program

Distraction.Gov – Statistics and Facts about Distracted Driving - official government site on distracted driving launched by the US Department of Transportation

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration – Vehicle Safety Research – NHTSA Drowsy and distracted driving research

Virginia Tech Transportation Institute Press Release  – Cell Phone Use and Distraction While Driving

Pew Internet and American Life Project (Pew Research Center) – Teens and Distracted Driving Statistics

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration – Study showing truckers that text and drive have an accident odds ratio of 23 percent.
  
Governors Highway Safety Association – cell phone driving laws for each state

 

 

 

 

 
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