If you have been affected because of a road accident or know of someone who has, you would know how it impacts people’s lives, and the importance of following road safety to ensure such an episode does not take place.
Road accidents are among the biggest killers in India1. Data suggests that India has among the highest incidences of road accidents, with one accident every minute and one death every four minutes 2. In 2013 alone, there were close to 500,000 road accidents in India in which more than 130,000 people lost their lives. A large percentage of these accidents involved two-wheelers, and in more than 50 percent of cases, the victims were bread earner* for their family 3.
With a view to bringing about greater awareness among people to take necessary precautions and avoid road accidents, superstar Amitabh Bachchan led a campaign on road safety initiated by the Association of American Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI) and Abbott. As part of this campaign, doctors in clinics and hospitals across India were provided with a poster, containing important messages on road safety endorsed by Amitabh Bachchan.
“I pledge my support for this campaign and commit myself towards the achievement of AAPI’s worthy goals. I am with you in this campaign to create awareness about head injury and trauma because of road accidents”, said Amitabh Bachchan.
“AAPI is committed to building the right foundation to address the serious concerns of head injury and trauma”, said Dr. Ravi Jahagirdar, President of AAPI. “We are grateful to Superstar Amitabh Bachchan for leading the campaign towards creating awareness, preventing accidents and saving lives.”
Abbott, along with AAPI, undertook a nation-wide road safety awareness drive, which reached more than 8 lakh people. Abbott’s field force, in partnership with doctors in clinics and hospitals across the country, dedicated an entire day to sensitize people on safety principles, promote safe driving tips and encourage them to take the pledge for safe driving by following easy and actionable points.
Overspeeding, inadequate protection (not wearing helmets/seatbelts), distracted driving (use of mobile phone, etc.) and not being alert are some of the key reasons recorded for road accidents.4 This road safety awareness drive encouraged people to be more responsible while driving and follow road safety regulations. The drive aimed at asking people to follow simple steps like wearing a helmet/ seatbelt, avoiding phone calls while driving, avoiding over-speeding and being alert while driving which could reduce road accidents.
“With our vision of ‘Zero Injury Zero Incidents’, Abbott’s field force is trained on safe two-wheeler driving. This has resulted in reduction in accidents to the tune of 83 % amongst Abbott employees,” said Bhasker Iyer, Abbott Management Representative in India. “An injury or fatality on account of road accidents can be avoided if people are aware and take necessary precautions. This awareness program, in partnership with doctors, will save many lives.”
“AAPI has been working with multiple stakeholders and professional associations like NSI, NSSI and AASAN in developing the first Trauma and brain injury guidelines for India,” said Anwar Feroz Siddiqi, honorary advisor to AAPI. “We will be partnering with companies like Abbott and Medtronic to take these guidelines to doctors across the country.”
About AAPI:
AAPI is the largest ethnic medical organization in the United States and represents the interests of more than 65,000 physicians and nearly 35,000 medical students/residents of Indian heritage. AAPI, a forum to facilitate and enable Indian American Physicians to excel in patient care, teaching and research and to pursue their aspirations in professional and community affairs, is an umbrella organization with nearly 130 specialty societies and alumni organizations. For more information on AAPI, please visit or www.aapiusa.org
About Abbott:
Abbott is a global healthcare company devoted to improving life through the development of products and technologies that span the breadth of healthcare. With a portfolio of leading, science-based offerings in diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and branded generic pharmaceuticals, Abbott serves people in more than 150 countries and employs approximately 73,000 people.
In India, Abbott has more than 14,000 employees working in manufacturing, research and development, logistics, sales and marketing and is headquartered in Mumbai.
Visit Abbott at www.abbott.com and connect with us on Twitter at @AbbottNews.