The formation of a new committee is on the cards as part of country’s efforts to encourage traffic safety practices among public and reduce number of road-related accidents, said an official.

The ‘Triple Committee’ will be formed in collaboration with the Traffic Department at Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Education and Hamad Medical Corporation’s Hamad Injury Prevention Program (HIPP).

“The main aim of this committee is to send out unified traffic safety messages to the community. We find it very important to work with partners to create suitable awareness messages based on local data,” Dr Aisha Abeid, Assistant Director, HIPP told media persons recently.

According to the HMC, 40 to 45 percent cases seen at the Hamad Trauma Center are due to road-related accidents. Approximately one in 11 trauma patients seen at the Hamad Trauma Center was a child victim with a road traffic injury (RTI). Only one out of seven children who died in Qatar from an RTI was treated at a hospital, the majority sustained injuries so severe that they died at the scene.

As part of efforts to reverse this trend and instill good traffic safety practices among the community HIPP has introduced several traffic safety awareness activities aiming at different segments of the community.

“We have taken initiatives and communicated with different ministries - mainly Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Education. We communicate closely in collaboration with them through their scheduled events,” said Dr Abeid.

HIPP conducts workshops and lectures at schools to improve traffic safety knowledge of students. HIPP also work with the Kulluna, National Safety Campaign’s Child Passenger Safety Programme to educate the public how to fix car seats appropriately.

HIPP works with the Ministry of Interior in different campaigns all throughout the year. It includes activities related to Traffic Week and the Winter Camping Season.

“There is seasonality to trauma in Qatar. We got a year-long calendar of awareness activities. We work with stakeholders, provide data and globally proven interventions for Qatar’s safety,” said Dr Rafael Consunji, Director of HIPP and Consultant at Department of Surgery, HMC.

“Right now our emphasize is on schools as they recently re-opened after the summer break. When the camping and winter season approaches, we talk about road activities and ATV safety. Then comes the foggy weather and we advice how to drive safe,” he added.

HIPP also works together with entities such as the Traffic Safety Committee, Qatar University, Ministry of Public Health, Weil Cornel Medicine-Qatar and Sidra Medicine.

Source: The Peninsula Qatar

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Khadiza Begum

Content Writer

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