Doctors to get life-saving car kits

A group of doctors will soon be equipped with a kit that could help them provide lifesaving first aid to casualties they encounter while driving. The initiative is spearheaded by the Doctors for Road Safety, an NGO recently-established by doctors who know too well the devastating consequences of traffic accidents. Data from the past 15 years shows a slow but rising trend in fatal road traffic accidents, where 2016 was a record year with 23 fatalities. In the first half of this year there were 13 fatalities – up from nine in the same period in 2017, which saw a total of 19 fatalities. According to the National Statistics Office, there were 14,940 accidents in 2017, slightly down from 15,017 in 2016. However, the number of injuries increased by 8.3 per cent to 405 over the same period in 2016. Still, statistics do not provide a true picture of the aftermath of traffic accidents. For at least three decades, consultant orthopaedic surgeon Ray Gatt and medical consultant Tonio Piscopo have treated the consequences of speeding, the use of mobile phones behind the wheel and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Some are not as lucky and do not even make it to hospital,...