Taking e-scooter safety into your own hands
A leading trauma doctor is urging e-scooter riders to take greater personal responsibility when it comes to use of the popular energy-efficient vehicles.
Associate Professor Joseph Mathew works on the frontline of The Alfred’s busy trauma service and says simple safety measures can help avoid life-altering injuries.
“We have seen a significant increase in e-scooter related injuries,” A/Prof Mathew said.
“Due to physics and the way people crash, it’s commonly the face, brain, spine and upper limbs that bear the brunt of a fall – often without the protection of a helmet.
“The injuries can be quite devastating – with traumatic brain injury a very common occurence. Lives have also been lost.”
A/Prof Mathew said the majority of those presenting to emergency departments with injuries sustained from e-scooter accidents are between the ages of 15-45.
“These are the most productive years of people's lives and the kind of trauma they’re subjected to means they often have lifelong impact of the injuries,” he said.
Many of these injuries can be avoided by taking basic safety precautions, such as wearing helmets and not drinking and driving.
“We have to take personal responsibility seriously,” he said.
“When you go out and have a few drinks, look out for your mates in the same way you would if they had their car keys with them. Don’t let someone you care about get on an e-scooter when they are alcohol or drug affected.”
These precautions not only make a “huge difference” to the wellbeing of our community, but also ease the burden on emergency departments.
“Depending on how severely injured you are, sometimes it can take 20 to 25 people to keep one person alive on arrival to our trauma centre.”
A/Prof Mathew hopes to see more people talking about e-scooter safety.
“It’s a new modality of transport that is environmentally friendly and accessible, so it’s understandable people want to use them,” he said.
“At the same time, we need to make people aware of the significant injuries and flow-on effect of what happens when safety isn’t a consideration.
“We all know to wear a seatbelt and not to drink and drive because of hard-hitting advertisement campaigns. These scooters go quite fast, and the effects of a mistake can be life-long, and it’s not well known.”
