Renewed commitment to injury prevention

Renewed commitment to injury prevention

Raising awareness of the impact of falls and alcohol on injuries in the home is the aim of ACC’s annual home safety campaign, Safety NZ Week.

Associate Minister for ACC Pansy Wong said the theme was timely, as an added emphasis on preventing injuries to children and the role alcohol plays in causing serious injuries and falls is a focus of the next phase of the New Zealand Injury Prevention Strategy (NZIPS).

She said children had been identified by NZIPS as requiring special focus.

Mrs Wong said alcohol was a significant risk factor for injury which cut across many of the NZIPS priority areas. She today released the findings of an evaluation of the NZIPS, the recommendations of which have been fully endorsed by Cabinet.

She said there had been some progress since the NZIPS was established in 2003 but the Government believed it was important to build on that solid foundation.

“Though we have made some improvements, 12 people die every week in NZ homes as result of accidents. Over the evaluation period there has been an increase in serious injuries overall.

“We are looking at what is working well in the Strategy and what is not across the six priority areas – falls, workplace injuries, drowning, road crashes, assault and suicide/self harm.

“Through NZIPS, the Government has renewed its commitment to achieving a reduction in the injury toll and we are determined to get results.’’

Mrs Wong said injury was the leading cause of death for New Zealanders aged between 1-34 years and generated an estimated $9.67 billion in social costs as well as tremendous human suffering.

She said over the next 12 months, the NZIPS secretariat’s focus would be on measurable results, clear accountability and active collaboration.

The report can be viewed at https://nzips.govt.nz/documents/nzips-evaluation-13July2010.pdf

ENDS