Hossein Ahangari

Bio: Hossein Ahangari is an academic researcher. The author has contributed to research in topics: Poison control. The author has an hindex of 1, co-authored 1 publications receiving 3 citations.

Police response time to road crashes in south-east of Iran.

Abstract: OBJECTIVES: To investigate post-crash time management by police. METHODS: The retrospective study comprised data related to all road traffic crashes from March 2009 to March 2010 in Sistan and Baluchistan province of Iran. Data was retrieved from the standard national form designed for road traffic crashes completed by police officers present at the scene. SPSS 15 was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: The median time for police to be informed in the total 2442 accidents was 10 minutes and the police response time was 15-20 minutes for non-fatal cases, while the corresponding duration for fatal cases was 15 minutes and 30 minutes (p DISCUSSION: Police arrival at the crash scene was beyond the average response time by Emergency Medical Services in Iran. It is vital to provide quicker ways of informing the police and to have more police stations along the highways. Language: en

Challenges of scene management in traffic collisions from the perspective of road emergency responders in East Azerbaijan, Iran

Abstract: Introduction Thousands of traffic collisions occur each year on Iran’s roads. This study aimed to investigate the challenges of scene management in road traffic collisions in the East Azerbaijan Province of Iran. Methods Data were collected using in-depth semi-structured interviews and analysed by content coding and merging. Subcategories and themes were then extracted after integrating similar codes. Participants were selected using the purposive sampling method, and interviews continued until data saturation was reached. Results Twenty participants were interviewed; nine categories were extracted from the collected data: infrastructure problems, lack of responders’ preparedness, triage challenges, deficiencies and limitations, management of special (hazardous) incidents, communication problems with casualties, lack of coordination, lack of psychosocial support from responders, and cultural and social challenges. Conclusion Each traffic collision requires an immediate and effective response; however, this involves several challenges as its process is an inter-sectoral issue. The major challenge is the lack of coordination among different responders. Accordingly, these challenges need to be addressed by developing a comprehensive plan, designing a leading organisation, and developing a comprehensive trauma system.

Road Traffic Injuries – Changing Trend?

Abstract: Road traffic injuries are one of the leading causes of death worldwide resulting in more than 127 million deaths; almost equal to the number of deaths caused by HIV/ AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria combined In addition, road traffic crashes are estimated to cause 20 to 50 million non-fatal injuries every year Death and disability due to road traffic injuries affect all age groups but the most affected are those in the young and productive years of their life It is estimated that road traffic injuries will move up in the ranking of leading causes of death from tenth in 2004 to fifth in 2030 (1) Economic cost of road traffic injuries is roughly 1%-2% of gross national product in most of countries Furthermore, road traffic injuries lead to indirect costs such as productivity loss caused by disabled population and their care providers, loss of property and police/ insurance activities (2) The Islamic Republic of Iran initiated a program of comprehensive road safety interventions in 2005 Three enforcement based interventions – seatbelt law, motorcycle helmet law and general traffic law enforcement eg use of speed cameras, patrolling and mass media educational campaigns on national radio and television, were introduced in all 28 provinces of country Fatalities per 10,000 vehicles decreased from 242 in 2004 to 134 in 2007 Similarly road traffic injuries per 10,000 vehicles decreased from 2276 to 1556 in 2007 (3) In the Arabian Gulf countries road traffic accidents are growing public health problem The discovery of oil around the middle of the last century has changed many aspects of life in the Gulf Countries There was an explosion in immigration with corresponding increase in vehicles In a report issued by the World Health Organization (WHO), Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has the highest road accident toll in the world, which now makes up the country’s principal cause of death in adult males aged 16 to 36 In Saudi Arabia from 1971 to 1997; 564,762 persons died or were injured in road traffic accidents, a figure equivalent to 35% of total population of Saudi Arabia During this period 66,914 people died on the roads due to accidents, amounting one person killed and four injured every hour Over 65% accidents occur because of excess speed, drivers disobeying traffic signals or use of cell phone while driving (4) It is widely believed that seat belt use is an effective way to reduce road accidents fatalities and injuries Saudi Arabia enforced seat belt law on 5th December 2000 making seat belt use compulsory for all drivers and front seat passengers A study conducted in Riyadh show seat belt use rate 33% for drivers and 4% for front passengers(5) In Saudi Arabia during the year 2008-2009, total numbers of deaths due to roadside accidents were 645,813 ie 13 deaths per 1000 accidents It amounts to one death every one and half hour or 18 deaths per day Total number of traffic accidents last year reached 485,931 and value of economic loss due to accidents is estimated 13 billion Saudi Riyals per year (6) Tertiary health care facilities are over burdened by huge number of people injured in road traffic accidents About one third of all hospital beds in kingdom are occupied by road accident victims Also, 792% of patients admitted to Riyadh Armed Forces Hospital with spinal injuries have sustained their injuries as a result of accidents (7) Recently the government of Saudi Arabia launched a new system to make roads safe called “Saher System” The “Saher” is a state-of-the-art traffic management system that can monitor vehicles and track them using a license plate recognition technology It has been in development for a year and now that it’s working on all main thoroughfares in the major cities, it is monitoring traffic violations as they happen Some traffic lights are equipped with stationary and mobile cameras that record traffic violations When a violation is committed, the system requests information from the Traffic Center’s database and issues an automatic ticket A minimum of SR: 500 fine is imposed and if this is not paid within 30 days, it will increase monthly(8) The objectives of the system are: 1 To utilize the latest and most advanced technology in the field of intelligent transportation (ITS) in order to create a safe traffic environment 2 To upgrade the existing road network 3 To enhance public security by using the latest surveillance systems 4 To ensure strict, accurate and constant implementation of traffic regulations Road traffic accidents are preventable but good data is important to understand the ways in which road safety interventions can be effective It is assumed that new system will address the road safety problem in Saudi Arabia It is suggested that school based safety education about driving and respecting the roads should be incorporated Mass media as TV and Radio should be involved in safety campaigns