New research out of the University of Ottawa suggests that bicycle helmet use is much more widespread in provinces that enact the most comprehensive helmet legislation. Youth in Ontario, for example, were much less likely to obey the provincial law mandating helmets for those younger than 18 years of age than youth in Nova Scotia, where helmet legislation applies to everyone.

A major new report on falls among seniors in Canada has been released and is available online. Falls & Related Injuries among Older Canadians: Fall-related Hospitalizations & Prevention Initiatives analyzes Canadian hospitalization data for fall-related injuries among people 65 years and older. The report by Vicky Scott, Lori Wagar and Sarah Elliott, prepared for the Division of Aging and Seniors, Public Health Agency of Canada, also includes results of a scan of fall prevention programs operating in Canada.

Helmets should be mandatory for anyone using all-terrain vehicles, both on and off roads and in all of Canada, say ThinkFirst Canada researchers in a recently published article. The group studied 10 years of ATV deaths in Ontario, noting that of the 74 people who died, just a single death occurred in 1996 and 1997, compared to 16 per year in 2004 and 2005.

Four million Canadians over age 12 were injured badly enough last year to limit their usual activities, says a new report released by Statistics Canada. Just over a third occurred during sports or physical exercise. In addition, close to half of those who reported bicycling say they never wear a helmet. Just 34% of Ontarian cyclists say they always wear a helmet - lower than the 37% national rate.

For more information on results of the Canadian Community Health Survey, see http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/100615/dq100615b-eng.htm

In an effort to create a “game changer” aimed at reducing the devastating toll of injury, Canada’s four leading national injury groups on June 15, 2010, released the report, One Voice, Safer Canada, which points the way for groundbreaking steps to advance the cause of injury prevention. This collaborative study is a result of work over the last six months, made possible by funding from the Ontario Trillium Foundation.

See the news release below and the full report.

The Canadian Institute for Health Information has released a report, Injury Hospitalizations and Socio-Economic Status, that finds that people living in the poorest neighbourhoods in Canada are 30% more likely to be hospitalized with an injury than people in the richest areas. It concluded that if every socio-economic group had the same injury hospitalization rate as the most affluent group, there would have been 21,000 fewer hospitalizations in 2008-2009, which would have led to savings of $167 million in hospital costs.

The Forum section on this website has a new email notification feature. Once you are a registered Forum user, you may sign up for topics you are interested in (e.g., falls, motor vehicle injuries) and you will be notified when something new is posted to that topic. Each time someone posts a new response in that topic, you will receive a notification in your email that will include a link you can click to go to that new posting.

Safe Kids Canada has kicked off its annual Safe Kids Week, May 31-June 5, by unveiling new data on helmet safety and wheeled activities such as bicycling, inline skating, skateboarding and scootering. While falls can result in various injuries, head injuries are the leading cause of serious injury and death to kids on wheels, particularly in those children not wearing helmets.

It’s important to remember the average child’s skull is just one centimetre thick, so it’s no wonder helmets play such a vital role. More than 1,000 children under age 15 were hurt while riding their bikes in 2007 alone, according to Transport Canada. For more information, see http://www.safekidscanada.ca

A new Ontario private member’s bill would make it law for Ontario drivers to leave a buffer zone of three feet when passing cyclists while travelling 50 km/h or less, four feet when driving at speeds up to 80 and five feet when travelling faster. The bill was introduced by NDP MPP Cheri DiNovo on May 18, 2010, who noted that similar laws exist in a number of European countries and U.S. states. It would be the first of its kind in Canada.

This year’s National Lifejacket Day on May 20 comes just days after a provincial court decision upheld Calgary’s bylaw that requires boaters to wear (not just carry) a lifejacket while boating or face a $500 fine. According to media reports, the bylaw has been in place since 1979 but the city has been working to more strictly enforce it in recent years.

A new report prepared by the Traffic Injury Research Foundation, The Alcohol Crash Problem in Canada: 2007, has just been released by the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators. You can download the report for free at the TIRF website. The report describes the magnitude, characteristics and trends of the alcohol-crash problem in Canada during 2007. See the highlights below.

March 15 marks the start of international Brain Awareness Week, a partnership of more than 1,700 organizations in 57 countries. In Canada, ThinkFirst Canada is teaching children to use their brains to protect their bodies by presenting the ThinkFirst Brain Day program in schools this spring. See the rest of the release from ThinkFirst, below.

For the first time, the government of Canada’s Speech from the Throne has stated that it will “work in partnership with non-governmental organizations to launch a national strategy on childhood injury prevention.” See the release from members of the Injury Alliance, below, congratulating the government on its commitment.

Injury Alliance release

A newly released survey of teen driver attitudes in the United States suggests that teenaged girls are becoming more aggressive and distracted drivers while teenaged boys are becoming safer. Teens also said they consider having their parents in the car with them more distracting than their friends – and they report wearing their seatbelts more regularly than their parents do. For more on the study, see http://www.allstate.com/foundation/teen-driving/Shifting-Teen-Attitudes.aspx

Locations in regions across Ontario have been finalized for the Functional Fitness for Falls Prevention Leadership Training course. In addition, an FFFP webinar is being offered on Jan. 29, 2010.

The Ministry of Transportation has provided information in the attachment below on a number of resources available, including for schools, the public and professionals.

MTO

With a dozen pedestrians killed on Toronto streets less than a month into 2010, pedestrians are invited to pledge their commitment to “cross the street as if their life depended on it.” The challenge is part of the iNavigait program, coordinated by Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and the Toronto Area Safety Coalition.

We are pleased to announce that as of April 1, 2010, the Ontario Agency for Health Protection and Promotion will be taking over responsibility for the contract management of the Ontario Injury Prevention Resource Centre, as funded by the Ministry of Health Promotion.

The British Columbia Injury Research and Prevention Unit has a new teleconference series ready for 2010. All sessions take place on the third Thursday of the month at 10am Pacific time. (1 p.m. EST) Topic descriptions and speaker biographies are found in the attached brochure. You may register for individual sessions or the whole bunch at once.  Below is your menu of injury prevention topics:

The 2010 Seatbelt Campaign will run from April 14-24, 2010, with the themes Buckle Up Ontario and Booster Seats. Below you will find a Campaign Guide with resources, contacts and registration forms. Free campaign materials are available after registering your campaign activity by submitting the Registration Form to your Regional Marketing Planner. One-time funding support of $200 is also available with registration.

Funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation, a new study is being launched to find ways and means to collaborate among Canada’s four national injury prevention organizations: Safe Communities Canada, Safe Kids Canada, SMARTRISK and ThinkFirst Canada. See below for the full news release on the study.

The first annual Ontario Injury Prevention Resource Centre Injury Prevention Forum is scheduled for March 3, 2010, at North York Memorial Hall in Toronto. This year’s theme is seniors’ fall prevention. Keynote speakers include such experts in fall prevention as British Columbia’s senior adviser on falls and injury prevention, Dr. Vicky Scott and Lynda McPhee, education coordinator for the Alberta Centre for Injury Control & Research. See the attachment for details.

Canadians are invited to sign on to the Vancouver Charter on Skiing Safety to show their support for the use of helmets during winter ski sports. Safe Kids Canada launched the charter on Nov. 20 at a winter helmet safety forum to encourage the use of helmets while skiing and snowboarding. British Columbia is the first province to officially endorse the charter, created in the context of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

Wednesday, Nov. 18 marks the National Day of Remembrance for Road Crash Victims, a day to remember those killed or seriously injured on Canadian roads, often in avoidable collisions, and those left to deal with the sudden and unexpected loss of people they love. This year’s theme is Raising awareness of the number of deaths on Canadian roads.

Safe Kids Canada is calling on its partners in injury prevention to ensure Bill C6, an Act respecting the safety of consumer products, passes the Senate. They are asking that injury partners join them in sending letters to the Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology, where the bill sits now.

The Ministry of Transportation has produced and made available new road safety resources for use in elementary and high schools. The resources feature printable lesson plans and appendices/handouts for each grade-level resource, as well as general reference information and a community engagement toolkit. Visit http://www.ontarioroadsafety.ca/

Booster seat laws significantly reduce the number of child deaths in the most serious head-on motor vehicle crashes, concludes a new study from York University and the Hospital for Sick Children, published in Injury Prevention. “We know that booster seats reduce injuries to children, and that laws increase their use,” said Alison Macpherson, an assistant professor in York’s School of Kinesiology and Health Science, in a news release announcing the study. “What this study shows is that laws requiring booster seats reduce child deaths in fatal crashes – crashes in which someone dies.”

A new report on childhood injury in Canada recommends altering the built environment to reduce the number of children hurt and killed every year. Modifying roads so they are more pedestrian and bike friendly would reduce the risk of injury and get kids walking to school again, says Dr. Andrew Howard in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

The Traffic Injury Research Foundation has released two new publications on fatigued driving. The first is a primer entitled The Facts About Fatigued Driving in Ontario – a Guidebook for Police. The second is a brochure geared towards the public, entitled Fatigued Driving, Fast Facts.

The Traffic Injury Research Foundation has produced a report on graduated driver licensing systems throughout North America. The meta-analysis considers different variables that reduce or increase the risk of a fatal crash among teenaged drivers. The full report, An Evaluation of Graduated Driver Licensing Programs in North America, is available at the TIRF website.

The Ontario Medical Association has joined other health-care organizations in calling for a ban on children under 14 riding all-terrain vehicles. The OMA has released a report that says ATVs pose a significant but avoidable risk of injury and death to children.

Fully one third of the 3,000 people hospitalized with ATV injuries in 2004-2005 were between five and 19 years old, the OMA notes in a news release announcing their report. The OMA suggests that children under 14 be banned from operating any size ATVs and that youth 14-16 be allowed to ride only power-restricted vehicles than cannot exceed 30 km/h. The laws governing ATVs vary across the provinces.

Injury costs Canadians $19.8 billion annually – more than $600 for each man, woman and child in the country, according to a new report released by SMARTRISK today, The Economic Burden of Injury in Canada. In fact, injury – from falls, traffic, drowning, suicide, violence and other means – remains the leading cause of death for Canadians aged one to 44, taking the lives of 13,667 people in 2004.

For the press release in English and French and to download the executive summaries and full report, see below.

Burden release English

Burden release French

EBI, full report - English

EBI, full report - French

EBI - Eng - ExecSumm

EBI - Fr - ExecSumm

EBI Errata

A new report, Child and Youth Injury in Review, 2009 Edition - Spotlight on Consumer Product Safety, has been released and is available online at Safe Kids Canada. The report notes that unintentional injuries are the leading cause of death to Canada’s children and youth from one to 19 years of age. It provides an overview of the leading causes of injuries and death for children and youth across the country.

The implementation in London of The Period of Purple Crying to prevent Shaken Baby Syndrome is featured in an article in the Aug. 17, 2009, London Free Press. For more information on the program, contact Denise Polgar, Injury Prevention Specialist, at the Trauma Program, London Health Sciences Centre/Children’s Hospital.

The Health Communication Unit is offering an introductory-level series of webinars this September. Thanks to a grant from the Ontario Ministry of Health Promotion, the workshops are free to people working with Ontario-focused health promotion initiatives.

Alcohol was involved in at least 12% of major trauma cases in Ontario in the last year, according to the latest Ontario major injury report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information. Of the 526 patients hospitalized for severe injury who had blood alcohol concentration levels over the legal limit of 0.08%, half were hurt in a motor vehicle collision. The number of severe injuries increased by 11% compared to five years earlier.

Canada’s anti-drinking and driving campaigns are superior to some others, in that not only do they warn of negative consequences for drunk driving but they also offer alternatives, says a new study from the University of Regina. Of five countries studied, Canada had the greatest number of different campaigns, along with a lower fatality rate than the United States.

Challenges to Canada’s impaired driving system are growing, a Traffic Injury Research Foundation survey of Canadian lawyers suggests. Those charged with criminal drinking and driving offences are less likely to plead guilty and are more likely to take their chances at trial, leading to increasing backlogs and court delays.

Registration is now open for this e-learning course, modelled after the Canadian Falls Prevention Curriculum. Offered online via the University of Victoria, the course will run from Oct. 2 - Oct. 30, 2009 and is $165.

A new U.S. report on graduated driver licensing concludes several criteria make for a system that can be expected to lead to the greatest reductions in teen car crash deaths: delays in driver licensing age, strong night driving restrictions and restrictions on teenage passengers.

The Traffic Injury Research Foundation has launched the Alcohol Interlock Curriculum for Practitioners website. The curriculum contains two parts, one available to the public with general information about interlocks, the second targeted towards registered users who wish to deliver education and training about alcohol interlocks to various groups.

This e-learning course is modelled after the Canadian Falls Prevention Curriculum and is being offered on-line via the University of Victoria. The course will run from May 29 - June 29 and is $165.

Nearly half of Ontario’s Grade 3 students will have taken the Swim to Survive program through the Lifesaving Society by the end of this school year. Any Ontario school board with its own aquatic facility(s) may apply for a grant. To date, the Society has approved over $2.6 million in Swim to Survive grants and reached over 162,000 Grade 3 students.

A new brain injury virtual community has been launched, created by and for survivors of brain injury, their families and advocates. Based out of Ontario, the actively moderated forum aims to attract members from throughout Canada and around the world. In the first month since its launch, the forum has reached 100 new members.

Ontario drivers will be banned from using hand-held cellphones and other devices as early as this fall, as the province’s new distracted driving legislation passed third reading on April 22, 2009. Drivers will face fines of up to $500 if they are caught texting, dialling or chatting on a hand-held device. Hands-free devices will still be permitted.

The Canadian government has passed new safety regulations on corded window coverings to help prevent strangulation deaths among babies and young children. It is also proposing changes to regulations governing cribs, cradles and bassinets. Health Canada has reports of 28 strangulation deaths and 22 near-fatal incidents linked to window cords since 1986.

In order to raise awareness of new drinking and driving “warn range” sanctions coming into effect on May 1, the Ontario Ministry of Transportation will distribute bilingual information cards and posters (see below) through ServiceOntario. Beginning on May 1, 2009, drivers whose blood alcohol concentration registers from .05 to .08 on a roadside breath test will lose their driver’s licences for three to 30 days. Drivers caught more than once face mandatory alcohol education programs and ignition interlock. For more information, contact the Ministry’s Lenni Eubanks at 416-235-5118 or lenni.eubanks@ontario.ca .

MTO Infocard

MTO Infocard French

Health Canada is inviting input on its proposal to implement legally binding controls on the advertising, sale and import of ski and snowboarding helmets, based on the newly developed Canadian Standards Association standard for recreational alpine skiing and snowboarding helmets. Currently, snow sport helmets are not regulated in Canada, unlike ice hockey helmets, which must comply with a CSA standard before they can be sold in Canada.

Safe Kids Canada and the Ministry of Health Promotion are pleased to announce the availability of a number of injury prevention resources for public health units across Ontario. Please contact Christiane Mitchell at 1-888-SAFE-TIP or email christiane.mitchell@sickkids.ca to order quantities of the following resources. The resources are available free of charge.

The nomination deadline for Ontario’s annual Road Safety Awards is Friday, March 27. The awards recognize excellence in a number of areas, including professional, volunteer, media, corporate leadership, partnerships and initiative of the year. See the documents below for details.

RSAA Nomination Form

RSAA FAQs

The Perth District and Huron County health units are hosting a half-day workshop on March 24 in Mitchell, Ont., on alcohol-related liability and its implications for golf clubs and recreational facilities. The guest speaker is the University of Western Ontario’s Professor Robert Solomon, who has more than 35 years experience in research and teaching on substance abuse policy, and tort, health care and criminal law.

Prof. Solomon has a particular interest in the recent emergence of civil liability for alcohol-related injuries. He has designed server and manager intervention programs for numerous organizations and is the National Director of Legal Policy for Mothers Against Drunk Driving Canada. The $25 registration fee includes Prof. Solomon’s session and a Q & A, materials, refreshments and lunch. See the brochure below for details and registration information.

Alcohol Liability Workshop Brochure

The Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation has launched a Request for Applications aimed to expand its Shaken Baby Syndrome program by offering start-up support for health care facilities and communities interested in implementing this best practice intervention. The primary goal of the ONF is to prevent and reduce the incidence of Inflicted Infant Head Trauma (also known as Shaken Baby Syndrome) by working with a greater number of partners involved in providing information, education and training to parents and caregivers. The deadline for online application is March 2, 2009, at 4 p.m.

A new book on catastrophic injuries in sports and recreation by Dr. Charles Tator has just been released. The book presents a comprehensive description and analysis of all catastrophic injuries cases reported during four 12-month periods over a decade for more than 100 sports and recreational activities in Ontario. Included are personal and population risk data and injury prevention strategies and tips for each activity.

The Canadian Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion Conference, originally scheduled for November 2009 in Vancouver, has been postponed until the fall of 2011. The decision was made after much deliberation by conference partners Safe Communities Canada, Safe Kids Canada, SMARTRISK and ThinkFirst Canada.

The Ontario Alliance for Action on Brain Injury is applauding a new Ontario Hockey League rule that requires players to keep their helmets on with chinstraps fastened during fights. The decision was announced days after a 21-year-old hockey player died after striking his head on the ice during a fight.

Injury prevention, chronic disease and substance abuse professionals are invited to attend the 6th annual Alcohol: No Ordinary Commodity forum in Toronto on March 5, 2009. This year’s particular focus considers the links between alcohol and injury prevention, as well as alcohol and chronic disease.

The Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation (ONF) has launched the 2009 Summer Internship Program in Injury Prevention aimed at preventing traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries. 

You can find the Call for Proposals on the ONF website at http://www.onf.org/index_prev.html# and click on 2009 Summer Internship Program in Injury Prevention.  You can download the Call in PDF format by clicking here: Download file

The deadline for online application is January 9, 2009 at 5:00 p.m.

Injury prevention practitioners need to “pick more fights” to get their issues on the public agenda, keynote speaker, journalist and author André Picard, told delegates to the 2008 Ontario Injury Prevention Conference in Toronto. About 225 people attended the conference that featured compelling keynote speakers and in-depth examinations of injury issues.

It would take up to 36 months for new drivers to graduate to a full licence under legislation proposed by the Ontario government. The new rules also specify no alcohol for drivers up to age 21, tougher penalties for novice drivers who break the graduated licensing rules and new restrictions on teen passengers.

The new Ontario Public Health Standards have been published and sent to all of the province’s 36 boards of health. The standards establish the minimum requirements for fundamental public health programs and services, which include assessment and surveillance, health promotion and policy development, disease and injury prevention and health protection.

The government of Ontario has introduced legislation that would ban the use of hand-held electronic devices while driving. Motorists who use a hand-held cellphone, send email or text messages or use other hand-held devices while driving would face fines up to $500, under the bill. The use of hands-free devices would still be permitted.

In the year since the Ontario government passed new legislation targeting street racing, more than 7,500 people have been charged with exceeding the speed limit by 50 or more kilometres per hour. The good news, the Ontario Provincial Police say in a news release, is that traffic deaths on roads they patrol have fallen by a third – standing at 233 as of the end of September, versus 354 in 2007. Meanwhile, the Traffic Injury Research Foundation reports that an estimated 5.4 million Canadians admit to excessive speeding.

Young and new workers are the focus of a new workplace safety awareness campaign in Ontario launched by the Industrial Accident Prevention Association. Young workers are twice as likely to be victims of work-related injuries as adults, research shows, and are five times as likely to be hurt during their first four weeks on the job.

André Picard, public health reporter at The Globe and Mail and one of Canada’s top public policy writers, and Michael Adams, president of Environics and best-selling author, have been announced as keynote speakers for the Ontario Injury Prevention Conference, to be held Nov. 16-18 in Toronto.

The Ontario Medical Association is calling on the province to “take action to curb the use of cellphones while driving.” The OMA has released a report, summarizing the evidence that driving while talking on the phone increases the crash risk. The report, Cellular Phone Use and Driving: A Dangerous Combination, makes a number of recommendations and is available online.

New research suggests Ontario’s bicycle helmet legislation has helped reduce the number of children killed in bicycle crashes. An average of six child cyclists under the age of 16 have lost their lives each year since the law took effect in 1995; that’s compared to 13 annually before the law was passed.

Sprinkler systems will be required in all new Ontario multiple-unit residential buildings higher than three storeys as of April 2010, under changes to the Ontario Building Code that have long been sought by the Ontario Fire Marshal, fire chiefs and others. The changes harmonize the province’s building code with the National Building Code and codes in other jurisdictions. The new requirements apply to new construction, additions and major renovations.

“The experience of other jurisdictions across North America is clear: residential sprinklers significantly reduce injuries, deaths and property loss due to fire. This requirement is a huge step forward in the protection of citizens of this province from fire,” said Pat Burke, Fire Marshal of Ontario in a news release

Latest statistics show that the number of people killed on Ontario’s roads has fallen to the lowest number since 1950. Premier Dalton McGuinty’s government recognized the province’s road safety partners on May 5, who have helped to make the province’s roads among the safest in North America. In addition, the government notes it has continued to act to cut the rate of death and injury further, including adopting measures to address impaired driving and street racing. You can read the news release at the Ministry of Transportation’s website and read the latest Ontario Road Safety Annual Report.

The Public Health Agency of Canada has released a new report, Healthy Settings for Young People in Canada. It notes there are some positive changes in health behaviours and attitudes for young people in grades 6-10 since the last report in 2004. Smoking rates have fallen among boys and girls, along with reports of marijuana and alcohol use.

The challenges cited were high rates of overweight and obesity, sedentary behaviour and physical injury. Nearly half of boys in grades 6-10 reported having had at least one injury requiring medical treatment in the last year, compared to about a third of girls. Visit the PHAC to read the report.

If you’ve had to miss a session of the SMARTRISK Learning Series – or you would like to revisit a favourite one – you can now view past sessions of this educational program as online videos. No special software is needed – just click and watch and listen. Meanwhile, register now for the Feb. 27 session on alcohol-related civil liability.

In response to strong demand from Ontario’s injury prevention practitioners, the Ontario Injury Prevention Resource Centre will host another two-day workshop of the Canadian Falls Prevention Curriculum, on Dec. 3-4, 2007, in Toronto at the SMARTRISK offices. This $200 workshop is offered free to Ontario public health staff.

If you are interested in attending a falls curriculum workshop outside of the Toronto area, sessions can be arranged in your region. Again, these are available at no cost to Ontario’s public health practitioners.

See the flyer for full details on the curriculum and how to sign up.

ThinkFirst Foundation and the Ministry of Health Promotion are teaming up under the Ontario Safe Sport Helmet Initiative to provide free sports helmets to Ontario community centres, recreation centres and non-profit youth-focused groups that offer sport or recreation programs targeting those in financial need. Applications are due by Oct. 19.

The Third Annual Symposium was held on Monday May 14, 2007, at York Region in Richmond Hill with 45 participants from 16 different organizations. The planning committee included representatives from York Region Health Services, Toronto Public Health, and the Ontario Injury Prevention Resource Centre.

Symposium Theme: A Multi-Faceted Approach to Falls Prevention

Evaluations reflected the day was a huge success.

Save the date for next year—June 10, 2008 in Brampton. Stay tuned for more information.

The Follow-up Newsletter from the Planning Committee highlights key points from the Symposium.

The early bird registration deadline for the 2007 Canadian Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion Conference has been extended to Sept. 28. The conference takes place from Nov. 11-13 in Toronto and includes a number of satellite events and working meetings before and after the conference.

The first study of road rage victimization among adolescents finds that one in 10 Ontario youths say they have been threatened with personal injury or damage to their vehicles and one in 20 were victims of vehicle damage or personal injury. That suggests adolescents are more commonly targets of road rage than adults.

People with acquired brain injury or spinal cord injury, and their family members/caregivers are invited to sign up for a free quarterly newsletter being launched by the Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation. NeuroMatters will contain information on research findings, the ONF and its work, and offer opportunities to shape research and learn more.

Southwest Injury Prevention Conference 2007 - Not by Accident Teachable Moments: Your Role in Preventing Injuries Oct. 2, 2007 at the Lamplighter Inn, London, Ont.

This conference is designed for the emergency service provider who works on the front line. The Not By Accident planning committee recognizes that police officers, firefighters, paramedics and emergency room staff, through their first hand experiences with trauma, can be a strong and credible resource for injury prevention. This conference is designed for those ‘working in the trenches’, to help them recognize their role in injury prevention and to take advantage of the “teachable moment”.

The goals of this year’s Not By Accident Conference are to: - Create opportunities to enhance knowledge and awareness of the injury epidemic - Enhance the perception of injury prevention priorities as a role for the Emergency Service Provider - Provide tools to identify and support local initiatives in their communities

See the registration form for more details.

Linda Yenssen will join the Ontario Injury Prevention and Resource Centre team at SMARTRISK as a Senior Program Coordinator on Tuesday September 4, 2007.

Linda served on the OIPRC Advisory Committee early in the development of the resource centre.  She has an extensive background in public health and has most recently worked for the Grey Bruce Health Unit in Walkerton. Within public health, Linda has worked in the field of injury prevention for 17 years.

As a university-trained registered nurse, Linda brings knowledge, skill and dedication. She is very familiar with the Ontario Health Promotion Resource System and brings many years of experience in partnership building, project planning, health promotion, project implementation and evaluation to this position.

The preliminary program for the Canadian Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion Conference is now available online, offering a wide variety of plenary and concurrent sessions, entertainment and satellite sessions. Early registration – with savings of $100 until Sept. 15 – is underway for the Nov. 11-13 conference to be held in Toronto.

Ontario’s Ministry of Health Promotion has launched an injury prevention strategy – the first of its kind in Ontario – to reduce the frequency, severity and impact of preventable injuries. The Aug. 8 launch included an announcement that the government will fund ThinkFirst Canada to provide free helmets for low-income children and youth.

Each day in Ontario, more than 65 people visit an emergency department and almost every day one person is hospitalized due to a tool-related injury. Injuries are most frequent in the summer. Learn more about tool-related injuries in July’s Ontario Injury Compass.

The Canadian Red Cross’s program to prevent violence and abuse, RespectED, has released two articles aimed at parents of children and teenagers. The articles deal with what to look for when assessing a summer camp and the risks teenagers face during the summer when they may be unsupervised more often.

Download the articles (in Microsoft Word format) below:

• Parents should assess camp safety before sending kids
• The “Dog Days” of Summer Can Also Bite

Although the number of Ontario children visiting emergency rooms with playground injuries has remained fairly steady over the last few years, substantially fewer children are arriving with head injuries, new research from the Canadian Institute for Health Information concludes. This might be due to injury prevention measures, including better playground design.

Algoma Public Health has released a detailed evaluation of its Creating Safer Homes Project. The project involved 69 households with children aged 0-6 years, who were part of the Healthy Babies Healthy Children long-term home visiting program. Families received home safety assessments and then had safety devices provided and installed for them, based on the assessment results.

We are seeking applications to join our dynamic team of injury prevention professionals for the full-time position of Senior Program Coordinator. Working within a team environment, the Senior Program Coordinator is responsible for day-to-day management of the OIPRC, including coordinating, implementing and evaluating services offered. The Senior Program Coordinator will educate and raise awareness within public health and the wider community about injury prevention issues including providing consulting support to public health and injury prevention practitioners and coordinating the dissemination of injury prevention information and resource materials.

Despite the introduction of booster seat legislation in several provinces, use among Canadian children aged 4-8 is still alarmingly low, new research suggests. Ontario kids were most often observed properly seated in boosters – yet even there, only a third of kids were correctly seated in the age-appropriate seats, researchers for AUTO21 concluded.

Health Canada is inviting comment from Canadians online until June 29, 2007, on how it can better contribute to enhancing the health of children and youth. This is a great opportunity for advocates for child and youth injury prevention to have their say.

The 130 or so delegates to the 2007 Ontario Injury Prevention Conference experienced the hospitality of northwestern Ontario for three days, walking away with gifts of beaded cloth bags hand-sewn by Aboriginal seamstresses and a raft of new injury prevention resources, contacts and information.

Health Canada is inviting comment on a potential ban on baby bath seats. At least 12 infants have drowned and another 25 nearly drowned in Canada since 1983, typically when the caregiver is out of the bathroom. No legislated safety requirements are in place for bath seats now.

Health Canada says it is currently considering two options:

• A total prohibition of all infant bath seats and bath rings, or
• A prohibition of bath seats and rings that do not meet the requirements of a referenced technical standard.

The Ontario government has passed a new law, toughening penalties for street racing and for repeat drinking drivers in the “warning range” of 0.05 to 0.08 blood-alcohol concentration. Those caught street racing can now have their licences suspended and cars impounded on the spot for seven days and face fines of up to $10,000.

Each year, about 16,000 people are charged with drinking and driving in Ontario, notes a Ministry of Transportation release announcing the changes. About one-quarter of the province’s annual road deaths are alcohol-related.

The Traffic Injury Research Foundation (TIRF) held its 44th Annual General Meeting on May 24, 2007 at the Bank of Montreal Building in Toronto, Ontario. Electronic copies of the presentations given at the AGM are now available. These presentations include:

• 44th Annual General Meeting Overview
• Marketing and Communications at TIRF
• Commercial Driver Licensing: What are current practices and how can they be improved?
• Impaired Driving: What are the perceptions of lawyers in Canada?
• Continuous Transdermal Alcohol Monitoring: What does the research conclude?
• Traffic Safety: Is anyone really concerned?

To view these presentations, see the TIRF website at: http://www.trafficinjuryresearch.com/whatNew/bulletinPDFs/AGM2007Presentations.pdf.

Register by midnight, Friday, May 11, to save on registration and hotel packages to the 2007 Ontario Injury Prevention Conference in Thunder Bay, Ont. Come experience first-rate keynote speakers, presenters and exhibitors who are industry-leading professionals in the health care sector.

The number of children and youth being hospitalized with pedestrian injuries has fallen by about 50% in the last decade, says a new injury hospitalization report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information. Older Canadians continue to suffer the greatest number of pedestrian injuries and the worst outcomes.

The data are from the 2006 National Trauma Registry Injury Hospitalizations Highlights Report. It provides an overview of patients hospitalized due to trauma in all acute care facilities in Canada for 2004-2005.

Safe Kids Canada has announced a new child passenger safety DVD for parents!

In April 2006, Safe Kids Canada and Hudson’s Bay Company (Hbc) launched Kids that Click, a program that educates parents on how to choose and use car seats, booster seats, and seat belts safely. In the first year of this program, Safe Kids Canada developed print resources that included an educational brochure on all stages of child passenger safety and one on booster seats and seat belts.

This year, Safe Kids Canada has produced a DVD, entitled Kids that Click – Keep Your Kids Safe on Every Ride, Tips for using car seats, booster seats, and seat belts safely, for this program. It will be available to parents and Safe Kids Canada partners beginning April 26, 2007. Safe Kids Canada will issue a press release to publicize the launch.

The program for the Ontario Injury Prevention Conference 2007 is now available. Please visit the conference website www.oipc.org to download a copy.

The deadline to submit an abstract for the Canadian Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion Conference has been extended to April 21, 2007. Please the CIPSPC website for more information.

PREVNet is holding its second annual anti-bullying conference on May 18, 2007, at McGill University, Montreal, Quebec. The theme for the conference is “Rise Up for Respectful Relationships!”. Please see the conference website for more information.

The OPHA 2007 Conference has issued a call for abstracts, with a deadline for submission of May 7, 2007. The theme of this year’s conference is Public Health:Who’s at risk? What’s at stake?. Abstracts can be submitted at the conference website, www.ophaconference.ca. See the Call for Abstracts flyer [PDF] for more details.

Please help us make the OIPRC website a better tool for you — take a few moments to answer a short survey about the site.

Ontario practitioners and community partners who work in falls prevention are invited to attend the Third Annual Provincial Falls Prevention and Policy Network Symposium in Richmond Hill, Ont., on May 14, 2007. The theme is A Multi-factorial Approach to Falls Prevention.

The June 3-5 conference in Thunder Bay, Ont., marks the first time the conference has been hosted in northern Ontario.

Conference streams include:

Life course – ages and stages

Cultures – what shapes who we are

Communities – where we live, work and play

Conditions – socio-economic and geographic

This conference aims to provide delegates with the latest and most innovative research, information and programs. We strive to promote prevention messages that resonate and injury prevention strategies that are tailored to meet the specific needs of diverse populations, living in assorted communities.

Register now

Don’t forget, registration for the Ontario Injury Prevention Conference 2007 is now open. Go to www.oipc.org and register now at the early bird rate and save!

Also, visit www.oipc.org for information on easy and affordable travel options to and from Thunder Bay.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Call For Abstracts

The Conference Program Committee invites you to submit abstracts for the 2007 Canadian Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion Conference. This national event is being co-hosted by Safe Communities Foundation, Safe Kids Canada, SMARTRISK and ThinkFirst Canada from November 11–13, 2007 at the Westin Harbour Castle Hotel in Toronto, Ontario.

The overall theme for the 2007 Conference is Evidence, Action, Innovation: Moving to End Injury, Violence and Suicide in Canada, with submissions incorporating the sub-themes of Evidence, Action and Innovation in relation to issue areas including: social support networks; education; physical environments; social environments; health services; culture; impact of colonialism; spirituality; role of traditional healers; income; social status; employment and working conditions; biology and genetic endowment; personal health practices and coping skills; gender; and, health across the lifespan.

For more information please download the following PDF file:
2007 National Conference - Call For Abstracts

Date: Friday May 4, 2007
Location: McMaster University,
Hamilton, Ontario

The Community Child Abuse Council (CCAC) is a volunteer-based, federally registered charitable organization with the mission to reduce the incidence and impact of child abuse and promote the safe and healthy development of children.

Established in 1976 as a local networking group, the CCAC is a leading expert in the field of child abuse and prevention, providing prevention education and treatment programs. This conference will provide an opportunity for professionals in this field to gain new information about leading edge research-based prevention programs that utilize best practice models within the field of child maltreatment services.

Objectives:
1. To develop an understanding of the challenges in child abuse prevention.

2. To understand the evidence and treatment of children and adolescents who have experienced sexual abuse.

3. To recognize early interventions for mothers with substance abuse issues.

4. To look at the various factors involved in youth aggression and violence and ways to address this.

5. To provide parent education to support the caregiver's role in ensuring child safety.

For more information contact:
Community Child Abuse Council
905-523-1020 or 1-800-470-2111
info@childabusecouncil.on.ca

Keynote Speaker:
Dr. Robert Conn
The SMARTRISK Approach to Social Marketing

Date: Tuesday April 17, 2007
Location: The Locks Restaurant, Merrickville ON
Time: 9:00am - 3:30pm

For more information and registration please email joanne.desormeaux@healthunit.org

Location: Merida, Mexico
Date: March 15-18, 2008

This Conference will give special attention to the processes of globalization and their implications for injuries and violence. The WHO is urging governments to address the two main themes of Violence and Traffic Accidents. The conference will also emphasize the global patterns in Technological and Epidemiological Transitions, proposing international collaboration as a fundamental strategy for the design and promotion of policies for injury prevention and safety promotion.

Now announcing the Second Call for Abstracts of the 9th World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion. The members of the Scientific Committee are keenly interested in receiving new abstracts on Transport Safety, Violence, Intentional self-injuries, Occupational Safety, Unintentional injuries, Emergency response, Trauma care and Rehabilitation.
 
We remind you that the National Organizing Committee is awarding a number of scholarships for individuals from low and middle income countries working actively in the injury prevention and safety promotion field.
 
You can find the themes for the Conference, deadlines for the abstract submission, scholarship guidelines and the latest information at our Conference Webpage:
www.safety2008mx.info 

For additional information or further questions do not hesitate to contact the Conference Team: safety2008@insp.mx , we will be glad to assist you!
 
We are looking forward to seeing you soon in Mérida.

Registration for the Ontario Injury Prevention Conference 2007 is now open. Register now at the early bird rate and save! Join us at Thunder Bay’s Valhalla Inn, June 3-5, for an exciting conference program that will educate and entertain, including offering opportunities to explore local attractions and network.

OIPC is an annual event that promotes injury prevention initiatives, innovative research and programming. The conference objectives are multi-faceted: from awareness building and education, to information sharing and networking.

The theme of Preserving Our People: Strategies Designed for Life, stresses a focus on injury prevention across a variety of environments, injury issues and population demographics. The conference will feature sessions on both intentional and unintentional injury and highlight the social determinants of health.

This event promises to attract practitioners, researchers, emergency service providers, organizations and students from every corner of the province and beyond. The exciting conference program will include opportunities to explore Thunder Bay’s distinctive attractions and a chance to network while being entertained by local performers.

Registrations can be made online at http://oipc.org

SpankOut Day USA April 30th was initiated in 1998 to bring widespread attention to the need to end physical punishment of children and to promote effective, non-violent disciplinary practices. More than 500 events and programs have been held since that time. Agencies in several foreign countries have adopted the observance to educate parents and caregivers.

For more information of many of the events taking place on this day, please visit: http://www.stophitting.com/spankOut/2007SpankOutDayEvents.php

The 4th annual forum will focus on current and emerging issues related to alcohol consumption and implications for health and safety policies. The aim of this forum is to bring substance abuse prevention and chronic disease professionals together in an opportunity for networking and knowledge exchange. This year we will be discussing the link between alcohol and chronic disease and the practical programming that is currently available in relation to this relevant and timely topic.
This forum is free of charge and lunch with special dietary considerations will be provided for all participants.

Enjoy speakers such as:

• Norman Giesbrecht, Senior Scientist, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

• Deb Keen, Director of Prevention Unit, Cancer Care Ontario

• Pam Benson, Manager, FOCUS Resource Centre

• Diane Buhler, Executive Director, Parent Action on Drugs

• Marianne Kobus-Matthews, Senior Health Promotion Consultant, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

• Janet McAllister, Program Consultant, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

To register, please visit:
http://www.apolnet.ca/resources/education/RegForm-Mar22Forum.html

The deadline to register is: Thursday, March 8, 2007. Space is limited and registration will close early if we reach capacity.

An Occupational Health and Safety Forum for the Health and Community Care Sector Presented in collaboration with Ontario Safety Association for Community and Healthcare, CSA presents a two day educational forum that provide attendees with essential knowledge, expertise and ideas around worker safety in the healthcare sector. The speaker faculty will provide updates on standards and regulations, case studies and strategic solutions to address the challenges facing this occupation.

Key issues to be discussed are: Implementing a sharps injury prevention program Respiratory protection and pandemic planning Implementing a health and safety management program Infection controls, measures and procedure Mitigating and managing risk Indentification and prevention of workplace violence

For more information please visit http://learningcentre.csa.ca

The Ontario Healthy Communities Coalition (OHCC) and The Health Communication Unit (THCU) have collaborated on the development of a proposal writing course which has been designed as a stand-alone, self-directed program, free of charge to all that have internet access. It can also be downloaded and printed.

The purpose of this online course is to help not for profit organizations plan and prepare winning proposals. Six modules will guide you through each step in the proposal development process:

 i. Developing (or Revisiting) Your Program Plan
ii. Seeking Funding
iii. Managing the Proposal Development Process
iv. Developing Your Proposal
v. Producing and Packaging Your Proposal
vi. Submitting and Following-up.

For more information please visit :
http://www.thcu.ca/ohcc-thcu-proposal-writing-course

Ottawa Congress Centre Ottawa, Canada April 2-4, 2007

This conference will aim to raise awareness about bullying and victimization behaviours and sharing best practices from leading experts. It will attempt to address critical gaps in service, identify special targeted groups, and highlight the critical involvement of youth. The conference will also consider mechanisms for exchanging expertise, knowledge, and effective strategies.

The program will include presentations from renowned international experts, hands on learning opportunities, youth engagement, live theatre, video presentations, plenary sessions and practical information. Participants from a broad cross section of constituencies will have the opportunity to consider a move towards a holistic, integrated community model of bullying prevention.

For more information on this conference please visit: www.iamsafe.ca

In the wake of the deaths of two children who were tobogganing, some people are calling for helmets to be made mandatory for tobogganers. Statistics on toboggan injuries from the Ontario Injury Compass, produced by the Ontario Injury Prevention Resource Centre at SMARTRISK, are quoted in the National Post’s story of Jan. 23, 2007.

A light-hearted series of posters highlights a deadly serious message in a new campaign launched by the Safe and Sober Awareness Committee of North Simcoe. The committee formally launched the campaign on Dec. 1, with the goal of reducing alcohol-related injuries and deaths on recreational vehicles in their popular tourist area.

The campaign features three key messages:

1. Drinking and driving recreational vehicles is against the law: know the laws.

2. Driving or riding recreational vehicles while impaired is just as serious and dangerous as driving a car while impaired: understand the consequences.

3. Impairment starts with the first drink.

For information, contact Velma Shewfelt at 721-7330, ext. 7527 or velma.shewfelt@smdhu.org

More than 3,900 Ontarians suffered major injuries during 2004-2005, according to a new Ontario Trauma Registry report. That’s an increase of 15% over the last five years. Close to half the major injuries were a result of car crashes and a third were linked to falls.

To order the Ontario Trauma Registry report, please visit the following site:

Canadian Institute of Health Information - Ontrario Trauma Registry report

The Ontario government has produced a one-hour Falls Prevention Seminar and Resource Kit, with input from a number of organizations. Available in English and French, seniors will be offered practical information and tools to help prevent falls, the government announced on Dec. 14.

The seminar will be made available to seniors across the province, said Jim Bradley, Minister Responsible for Seniors. Staff from public health units, Osteoporosis Canada and other organizations, will conduct the seminar.

To print or download the resource kit, please select the following link:
Falls Prevention Seminar & Resource Kit

It’s the start of a brand new year, when many Canadians get set to make their annual New Year’s resolutions: get fit, lose weight and stop smoking. These are all admirable goals that will help you to improve your health. But have you considered making a resolution to reduce your risk of injury throughout the year?

The Canadian Health Network takes a seasonal look at injury risks and the best ways to reduce your risks. Find out common injury risks in winter, spring, summer and fall and all year round, along with the best ways to lower the risks to yourself and family members

On December 18, 2006, the Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA) with funding from Canada’s Drug Strategy, Health Canada, launched drinkingfacts.ca, a new youth website to raise awareness about the harms associated with high-risk drinking. Drinkingfacts.ca is targeted to youth 14 to 18 years of age.

Drinkingfacts.ca is based on extensive research and conversations with young Canadians. Young people stated that they want factual information so they can make informed decisions about alcohol. Information is presented in a variety of formats, including quizzes, Q & A, Did you know? and an ‘Alcopedia’. Youth tell their personal stories in candid videos and written format. Drinkingfacts.ca will be of interest to youth, parents and educators.

Visit Drinkingfacts.ca and feel free to forward this message to your information networks.   Drinkingfacts.ca is designed to increase teens’ knowledge of alcohol-related risks so they will be better equipped to make decisions about drinking.

The first United Nations Global Road Safety Week will take place from April 23-29, 2007 and the focus will be on young road users, including young drivers, who are at high risk of injury and death. Globally, 1.2 million people are killed annually on the roads and another 50 million are injured. During Global Road Safety Week, youth delegates from over 120 countries, including Canada, will meet in Geneva for a World Youth Assembly on Road Safety where young people will discuss a declaration regarding the improvement of road safety among youth.

For more information please click on the following link:

Hooked on Road Safety

Safe Kids Week 2007: Drowning Prevention

May 28 - June 3, 2007

Safe Kids Week is an exciting national education campaign presented by Safe Kids Canada with sponsor support from Johnson & Johnson. Every year during Safe Kids Week, hundreds of community organizations across the country join Safe Kids Canada to focus attention on preventing injuries to children.

For more information please click below:

Safe Kids Week: Drowing Prevention Information