One of the most important roles of a trauma center in the trauma system is to promote injury prevention activities in hopes of reducing the incidence and severity of traumatic injuries. Our Injury Prevention team travels all across the Northeast Georgia region to share valuable resources with the community to help prevent these leading injuries.
Effective injury prevention begins with a focus on the most common causes of injury in the community.
Leading Causes of Traumatic Injury & Types of Prevention
Did you know that falls are the leading cause of traumatic injury at Northeast Georgia Medical Center?
Each year, millions of older people—those 65 and older—fall. In fact, more than one out of four older people falls each year, but less than half tell their doctor. Falling once doubles your chances of falling again.
Falls Are Serious and Costly
- 1 out of 5 falls can cause a serious injury such as broken bones or a head injury
- Falls are the most common cause of traumatic brain injuries (TBI).
Additional resources about fall prevention:
A Matter of Balance
A Matter of Balance is designed to reduce the fear of falling and improve activity levels among community-dwelling older adults. The program includes eight two-hour classes presented to a small group of 8-12 participants led by trained coaches. The program enables participants to reduce the fear of falling by learning to view falls as controllable, setting goals for increasing activity levels, making minor changes to reduce fall risks at home, and exercise to increase strength and balance.
Bingocize
Bingocize combines the game of bingo with exercise and tips to reduce the risk of falls. Participants play Bingocize twice weekly for 10-week sessions, with each 45-60 minute session consisting of exercises (range of motion, balance, muscle strengthening, and endurance exercise) and fall prevention information.
For more information about a Matter of Balance or Bingocize, call 770-538-2711.
Did you know that 76% fatalities in crashes are caused by unsafe driving behaviors, including distractions, impairment or driving too fast for conditions?
- 60% of victims do not wear a seatbelt
- 16% of fatalities are pedestrians
Please click here to learn more.
Motorcycle riders continue to be over-represented in fatal traffic crashes. To keep everyone safe, we urge drivers and motorcyclists to share the road and be alert! We remind all motorcyclists to make themselves visible, use DOT-compliant motorcycle helmets and always ride sober.
Additional resources about motorcycle safety:
Firearm-related injuries are among the 5 leading causes of death for people ages 1-64 in the United States.
There are many types of firearm injuries, which can be fatal or nonfatal. Click here to learn more about these injuries and how to prevent them.
STOP THE BLEED® is a public education initiative developed by the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma (ACS COT) to teach life-saving bleeding control techniques inspired by military experiences and driven by the critical need for rapid emergency response. The program emerged from lessons learned in military conflicts where tourniquets proved vital and was shaped by the ACS COT EMS subcommittee’s findings on the benefits of early intervention.