NATIONAL SAFETY COUNCILS

Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 219, 10 June 1921, Page 6

NATIONAL SAFETY COUNCILS

ACCIDENT INCIDENCE RATE IN NEW ZEALAND CAN IT BE LOWERED? z „ Wastage and curtailment of human life, limitation of output, decreased efficiency, and suffering, poverty, and economic waste arising from the incidence of prevent aide accidents is considerable, flays tlio "New Zealand Journal of Health and Hospitals.” The growth of cities and the consequent congestion of traffic, modern speedy mechanical modes of locomotion and production, and the expansion of industrial concerns and dangerous occupations amalgamate in an incessant warfare resulting in this marked incidence as evidenced in the statistical returns of any country. Thus in America alone in nineteen months 126,000 men, women, and children wero killed by accidents in the industries, on the streets, and in the houses; and in those same months 2,000,000 persons were so seriously injured that they lost over four weeks of time, or ! wero permanently maimed. Contrast ' these figures with the fact that, during that same period, of 2,000,000 American goldiers who went across seas 50,150 wero killed in battle or died as result of , wounds inflicted, and 200,000 -were injured, and it is thus revealed that the warfare of peace is as deadly as that of armed conflict. - In British factories, mines, and means of transport 455-1 workers wero killed and 222,000 injured in 1919. While in London in the same year a total of 688 persons were killed by motor vehicles, and 19,027 injured. Of these, private automobiles killed 138 and injured 374-1; motor buses killed- 136 and injured 1953; taxi-cabs killed 368, and motor-cycles 25. As to Australasia, in 1919 there were 2779 deaths duo to external violence, exclusive of suicide. Of these we find among some of the contributing causes: Burns (conflagration excepted), 290; accidental drowning, 474; traumatism by fall, 353; traumatism in mines or quarries, 71; by crushing (vehicles, railways, eta.), 557. In the coal mining industry in 1918, of 21,584 employed there wore 20 killed and 297 injured, and a total of 82 killed and 989 injured for all kinds of mines. In 1919 there wero 173 killed and 1817 injured on the State and Federal railways. Turning to our own Dominion of New Zealand, we find, according to tho returns of the Government Statistician, tho following;—

In the year 1918 there wore 538 deaths through accidents, excluding those for homicide, starvation, and excessive cold. The number of bodies on which inquests were held for the same year w-as 1404 —1023 males and 381 females. Of the*e the verdict was accidental death in 363 males and 72 females, 110 being due to drowning. In factories— Accts. Slight. Modi. Ser. Fatal 1918-19 ... 1,053 795 192 58 8 Mines and quarries— < Proportion per 1000 persons Deaths. employed. Coal mines 6 1.50 Metal mines 2 0.77 Stone quarries .... 2 .1.40 ■Railway; accidents — Pas- Em- • sengers. ployees. Others. Tls. 1918 11 765 29 805 1919 33 715 29 777 The railway accidents in 1919 were:— Fatal, 23; serious, 22; minor, 732. To these figures must bo added those innumerable minor and non-fatal accidents of which no notification is received for statistical purposes. That tha necessity of combating all agencies tending towards; such disastrous universal results is surely apparent, as is fully realised- in America by the existence of such organisations as ,the National' Safety Council. This is an organisation of seventy-five directors, electing' eighteen executive committeemen (the directors elect tho officers); four hundred, and fifty high-grade men in all parts are acting as committeemen and officers of local councils. The general manager and staff are tbs only salaried officers. It is a voluntary co-oper-ativo association of employers and others —non-political, non-commerola 1, and nbt for- profit. At present it has a membership of 8800 factories, railroads, public service companies, mines, insurance companies, technical schools, etc. The following is tho nature and scope of its work:— (1) It issues an educational bulletin service—three posters each week, dealing with disease and accident prevention suitable for posting on bulletins and advertising boards at railway stations, factories, tramcara, etc. Ono bulletin is issued each week for the executives, bringing to their attention the latest and most efficient plans, methods, and ideas for, getting the best results from safety work. (2) It maintains an information bureau and library for answering inquiries regarding all phases of safety work, sanitation, industrial hygiene, and other branches of industrial relations.

'/ (3) It issues safe-practice pamphlets once a month, containing engineering studies of industrial hazards.

(4) It Joans safety motion pictures, films, and stereopticon slides for use nt workmen's safety meetings and other occasions.

(5) It aide in the organisation of State and local councils in various parts of the country. These local councils not only foster and assist the industrial accident prevention work in their locality, but organise the entire community. Besides these functions it conducts also an annual safety congress, where papers and discussions on all phases of accident prevention and industrial relations are given by experts. That tho endeavours of suoh a mutual organisation as this in any country would produce satisfactory results' it is reasonable to expect. When it is to be considered that fully 75 per cent, of accidents are deemed preventible there appears scope even in this Dominion for a greater concentrated effort to lower the striking incidence of accidents in all spheres of life, and this it seems more than reasonable can be accomplished by the co-operatiftn of the industrial, social and medical forces.

Dr. IF. E. Mock, author of that interesting work 'lndustrial Medicine and Surgery," in an address delivered at the Health Service Section nt tho Ninth .Annual Safety Congress of tho National Safety Council, 1920, stated, as reported in the council's official publication, the "National Safely News," as follows:— "It is very necessary that we co-ordi-nate the work of prevention and the work of reclaiming the handicapped victims of accident and disease. Tn some of our largest industries the safety oi prevention work, the medical and surgical department, and the employment department have become so closely COodinated that the three services together represent the human conservation movement in that Industry. In the physical examination of employees with proper placement of tho handicapped we have one of the host examples of preventionprevention of premature breakdown, prevention of injury to the man himself, nnd prevention of injuries to others caused by iv dangerous follow-employee. In a medical department where a high standard of medical and surgical service Is rendered to tho employees we have another example of prevention—prevention of dangerous complications, of permanent deformities, and of death, by the rendering of early and proper medical or surgical care to the sick and injured employees. In the training of handicapped employees after they have ri>povwed iioiu their injuries, ahd their ’

replacement on jobs where they can again become useful citizens with opportunity fof advancement, wo have the third example of prevention—prevention of human wastage, of prematurely scrapping these handicapped; in other words, human salvage.”