Killer in the house
Domestic accidents outnumber road accidents:
by Pushpa Ramyani Zoysa
Would you believe it if someone told you that road accidents only
accounted for a small portion of the fatalities in Sri Lanka?
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Pic courtesy: dermeffacefx7.com |
A study has revealed that the highest number of people who are
admitted to hospitals around the country are victims of domestic
accidents.
Last year alone, a total of 105,100 patients had received treatment
in the main trauma center in Sri Lanka (accidents and orthopoedics NHSL),
following accidents at home. Out of these, 66,767 were OPD patients
while there had been 36,319 admissions.
Accidents are the main cause of injury and even death in children.
People only relate accidents to road accidents or accidents that occur
during outdoor activities. However, there are many dangers lurking
around our home which is generally supposed to be a safe place, with the
main cause being negligence. Interestingly, road accidents account for
only around 19 percent of the total number of injuries while domestic
accidents and various kinds of injuries caused by falls account for a
whopping 45 percent of the total.
Prevented
"People think that only road accidents are to be careful of. It is
not true. Domestic accidents are more frequent and most of them can be
easily prevented," says National coordinator of training and team leader
of triage and information unit Pushpa Ramyani Zoysa.
"Domestic accidents ranging from burns, scalds, electrocution,
injuries, to accidental poisoning put thousands of lives in misery every
year. When we look at the statistics, we do not see any decrease in the
number of patients admitted to hospitals. This has to be stopped. People
are careless when going about their day-to-day activities.
Domestic accidents are more common in extreme age groups. More than
older people, it is very likely to find a small child becoming a victim
of such accidents. This is mainly because of the negligence of the
elders. Children by nature are very curious and love to explore things.
It is the parents or the caregivers responsibility to create as safe an
environment as possible for the little ones.
Supervision
"We have come across situations where very young children are left
without any adult supervision and being the innocent victims of various
kinds of burns, drowning, injuries, electrocution, or falls, which are
almost always preventable. Most of the cases involve scald or burn by
hot water or fire, touching hot objects such as cooking utensils, etc.
We have seen small children burnt with heated irons which are left
unattended or left within their reach.
It is also quite common to find women burnt by touching hot surfaces
with bare hands, burnt by steam, hot oil or water while cooking. Just
think for a moment of what will happen to the family if the mother is at
hospital with such injuries. The family routine will come to a virtual
standstill. These accidents have consequences beyond imagination.
"Electrocution is also a major cause of domestic accidents. Some
children unfortunately lose their lives due to the pure negligence of
their parents. Hazardous objects such as electrical sockets or any other
outlets, cords, equipment should always be kept out of reach of children
or properly covered or guarded.
Injuries
"Water or other liquid spilled on the floor could easily cause
injuries or sometimes even death due to fall. Floors should always be
kept clean and dry and staircases should be free of any kind of
obstruction. Babies should never be left unattended on high surfaces,
and windows and doors must be locked to avoid misadventure," says Ms.
Zoysa.
"There have been instances of children accidentally left locked
inside cupboards. This is really unfortunate and alarming. People should
always be cautious about their surroundings. Not only small children,
even adults suffer severe injuries due to their sheer negligence. Take,
for example, women who sprain their ankles or even break their legs
wearing high heels."
Accidental swallowing of foreign objects, strangulation, and
suffocation are also major accidents, sometimes causing the death of not
only small children but even adults.
Prevention is always better than cure when it comes to accidents.
Domestic accidents are almost always preventable by being more mindful
of household safety.
Source:
The accident and orthopedic service Sri Lanka.
The writer is national coordinator of training and team leader of triage
and information unit |
