Health Ministry warns:

Avoid needless injuries this New Year

by carol Aloysius

With New Year festivities only a week ahead, the Colombo National Hospital has warned the public to take precautions against avoidable accidents and injuries that usually occur during this period.

Director National Hospital Sri Lanka Dr. Anil Jasinghe told the Sunday Observer, the five most common types of accidents which occur during this festive period were: Road accidents; domestic accidents, falls (from low and high elevations), sports activities (avurudu sellam) and violence.

"Last year (2014) during the two days New Year was celebration, we had 354 outpatients of whom 157 were admitted. Of them, 61 were for road accidents, 56 from domestic injuries, 105 from falls, 13 sustained injuries from occupational hazards, 31 were violence related, three cracker injuries and 14 sports injuries from avurudu games.

All these were avoidable accidents", he noted. He said that although the figures were 26% less than the previous year (2013), due to increased awareness raising among the public, injuries caused during this period were often life long, disabling, and sometimes fatal.

"The public must take all precautions to avoid them", he reiterated.