The Virginian-Pilot
©
VIRGINIA BEACH
If you're involved in a car crash here next year, don't be surprised if someone with a clipboard and a syringe starts asking questions.
Starting Jan. 2, a team of researchers will be canvassing the city to survey drivers about their drug habits. The goal is to determine how the use of illegal, prescription and over-the-counter drugs affects the likelihood that a driver will be involved in a collision, said John Lacey, who's directing the study for the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation.
The study will "try to quantify the extent to which they may make people more or, frankly, less likely to be involved in crashes," he said. "We want the data to tell us what's going on."
The $4 million study will take place over the course of 2010 and will include about 2,500 drivers who have been involved in crashes and about 5,000 who haven't, Lacey said. The survey will be voluntary and confidential and will include answering questions and providing a saliva and blood sample, he said.
Lacey said they hope to release the results during the summer of 2011. The goal is to help shape public policy nationwide, he said.
Researchers chose Virginia Beach because of its size, the number of crashes it has each year and because the Police Department is actively involved in preventing impaired driving, Lacey said.
The study will also benefit the Police Department, said Sgt. Scott Wichtendahl, who oversees the Traffic Safety Unit. Researchers will pay off-duty police officers to transport them to crash sites, which will boost the number of officers on the streets, he said.
Police will help drivers and work crash scenes as usual before introducing the researchers, he said. Information given to researchers will not be shared with police.
"Not only is it conducting the valuable research that will be used nationwide and for many years to come, but also it's supplementing our work force," Wichtendahl said. "The ramifications of it are astronomical."
There were 9,021 vehicle crashes reported in Virginia Beach last year. Drugs or alcohol were involved in nearly 7 percent, according to police statistics. Of the 28 fatal crashes, 17 were drug- or alcohol-related, according to the statistics.
Kathy Adams, (757) 222-5155, kathy.adams@pilotonline.com
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I would have many questions on this program
This article leaves me with more questions than it does answers.
How will the public be assured that the people drawing blood samples are licensed Phlebotomists in the Commonwealth and what city department will oversee the medical aspect of this program and ensure that invasive procedures are done properly and that the employees are competent. I know with VBEMS medics must meet stringent requirements to perform these procedures under the city EMS medical director.
Will the off duty officers be responding to the scene of these accidents as an emergency response that is blue lights and siren ? Virginia Beach is a big city and getting to an accident scene can take quite a bit of time non emergency. I cant see how the risk of emergency response could be justified here. So what will the policy on this be ?
I would be concerned about potential delays on accident scenes with EMS. EMS tries to have an on scene time of under 10 minutes with trauma patients or patients where mechanism of injury would dictate a response to a trauma center. I would never allow someone that is not EMS, Fire and PD qualified to be in the area of the accident and certainly not in the ambulance. Of cou
cont.
Of course if there are no injuries this would not be an issue.
Are there any issues with HIPAA ? I find it hard to believe these employees would be allowed to perform procedures in an EMS unit or at a local hospital.
I sure dont have any issues with any study that might reduce drunk and drugged driving but the idea of having untrained people getting involved with accident scenes and looking to perform medical procedures makes me uneasy in the absence of better information.
Here are the job descriptions for this program
http://www.pire.org/employmentlisting.aspx?id=819
http://www.pire.org/employmentlisting.aspx?id=817
http://www.pire.org/employmentlisting.aspx?id=828
Take the money buy more cop
Take the money buy more cop cars and hire more officers. There has to be some morons name attached to this kamal krap, let's find out who he, she, or they are.
Try this survey
I’d rather see them use the $4 million to send someone with a clipboard and a syringe and start asking these questions to all food stamp and welfare recipients. Pay a home visit to check their assets like new cars, wide screen TV, cable, and jewelry. The goal will then be to see how the use of illegal, prescription and over-the-counter drugs and plain laziness affects our economy and the taxpayers of Virginia Beach. "We want the data to tell us what's going on." Might be interesting.
This is a joke right?
You've got to be kidding me 4 million dollars for this! You could've recruited some volunteers for this study for free. That 4 million could have went elsewhere.
i know the results
and will only charge a mil. That's a 75 percent discount!! In the interest of our fair city having no money, as we've all heard previously, I will be happy to give you the results for no charge. Those results, for free, are that your risk for having an accident rises rapidly as your drug use increases. Do drugs, do accidents.
4 million dollars divided by
4 million dollars divided by 7500 questionnaires equals $533 a survey.
What's the point?
I am sure we've had enough studies on the effects of driving while drunk, as well as driving under the influence of pharmaceuticals and various types of botanicals.
What will we do with the results? Ban illicit drugs? Oh, we did that already? Ban driving while on certain prescriptions? Oh, we already did that? Then again....what's the point? Just another way to throw taxpayer money down a rathole.
Since it's been revealed that driver reflexes and inattention are just as compromised by using a cell phone while driving, let's add that to the study.
Maybe we can ban them too.
Where
did the money come from for this 'study?' If it's my taxpayer dollars then this is a waste.
I'm going out on a limb, here, but
I'm betting the use of many prescription and non-prescription drugs are contributing factors in many accidents.
Can't wait to see the results of the study.