Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / CDU Lecturer in Psychology Tim Piatkowski says there were 100 ED presentations in Darwin for e-scooter injuries in an eight month period and half of those patients were intoxicated

Transcript

CDU Lecturer in Psychology Tim Piatkowski says there were 100 ED presentations in Darwin for e-scooter injuries in an eight month period and half of those patients were intoxicated · 360 with Katie Woolf

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  Speaker 1: Well, we know that there's been quite a bit of
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  Speaker 1: discussion about the scooters that you see around the place,
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  Speaker 1: and a new study has highlighted the significant impact that
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  Speaker 1: a scooters are having on the Top Ends health system.
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  Speaker 1: With one hundred presentations to the emergency department in eight months,
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  Speaker 1: those who were admitted to the hospital were intoxicated. While
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  Speaker 1: writing is my understanding now Joining me on the line
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  Speaker 1: right now is Charles Darwin University lecturer Tim piott kovski
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  Speaker 1: I do apologize Tim if I've pronounced that name incorrectly.
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  Speaker 1: Good morning to.
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  Speaker 2: You, heod morning. How are you? Yeah?
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  Speaker 1: Good, lovely to have you on the show, Tim, Tim
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  Speaker 1: talk us through this study. What did it reveal?
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  Speaker 2: All right? Well, obviously we had a lot of We
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  Speaker 2: did a prospective study looking at the people that came
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  Speaker 2: into emergency at the Royal Dwan for about eight months,
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  Speaker 2: so January to September October in twenty twenty one, just
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  Speaker 2: looking at what sort of injuries, whether they were intoxicated,
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  Speaker 2: and how much that sort of cost the hospital system.
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  Speaker 2: So lots and lots of broken arms, ris, lots of
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  Speaker 2: facial dental damage, and a lot of head injuries because
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  Speaker 2: people weren't wearing their helmets, and about half half of
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  Speaker 2: all the presentations were intoxicated, so that wasn't super brighter, No.
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  Speaker 1: And Tim, I guess I'm sort of not surprised because
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  Speaker 1: I usually catch up with Saint John's every Monday, and
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  Speaker 1: you know, generally there is an e scooter incident pretty often,
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  Speaker 1: and pretty often they're fairly late at night or very
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  Speaker 1: early in the mornings.
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  Speaker 2: Correct, between between midnight and four in the morning. Between
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  Speaker 2: Thursday and Sunday were the most common times of presentation.
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  Speaker 1: And do you have any idea of how serious? Some
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  Speaker 1: of those injuries were.
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  Speaker 2: Pretty like pretty pretty bad. Some people were very lucky.
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  Speaker 2: We had a you know, there was a lot of
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  Speaker 2: X rays and cts. But you know, some people had
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  Speaker 2: to stay for for quite some time. So I think
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  Speaker 2: up to some people ended up in long stay, some
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  Speaker 2: short stay, and the costs associated with that was up
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  Speaker 2: to a few thousand dollars per per patient.
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  Speaker 1: Wow. So there's no doubt it's having an impact in
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  Speaker 1: a number of different ways. By the sounds of things.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, so I think it'd just be good to
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  Speaker 2: you know, Brisbane or Queensland or introduced some pretty hefty
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  Speaker 2: fines and things like that. I think, you know, we
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  Speaker 2: here in the top end could look at maybe more
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  Speaker 2: strategic public health messaging, maybe people telling their stories about
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  Speaker 2: you know, what happened to them. Can you can imagine
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  Speaker 2: it'd be, you know, you're out for a good night
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  Speaker 2: with mates, right and then you you know, have a
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  Speaker 2: few too many drinks, you don't put your helmet on,
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  Speaker 2: you hit a curb and then that you're in hospital
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  Speaker 2: for a few days. That's one of the you know,
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  Speaker 2: one of the probably worst things that could happen and disappointing.
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  Speaker 2: But if if we've got a bit more awareness about
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  Speaker 2: that out there, a bit more harm reduction messaging, encourage
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  Speaker 2: the helmet wearing, encourage you know, not drinking and hopping
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  Speaker 2: on the scooters. I think that that would be a
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  Speaker 2: great start, and that would be something that you know, stakeholders,
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  Speaker 2: you know, research and those in policy, it would be
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  Speaker 2: good to get together and have some discussions.
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  Speaker 1: How often are people sort of jumping on their scooters
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  Speaker 1: without helmets on and ending up injured? Is that, you know,
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  Speaker 1: is that a pretty common denominator?
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  Speaker 2: Quite common? Yeah, you know across not just here, across Australia. Yeah,
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  Speaker 2: and particular.
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  Speaker 1: Late at night yeah, I mean, like you've touched on
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  Speaker 1: the Queensland government obviously recently implemented those penalties for e scooters.
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  Speaker 1: So they've got fines for two hundred and fifteen dollars
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  Speaker 1: for exceeding the speed limit by fourteen to twenty five
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  Speaker 1: kilometers an hour, one hundred and forty three dollars for
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  Speaker 1: not wearing a helmet, and four hundred and thirty one
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  Speaker 1: dollars for drink driving. Do you reckon that the Northern
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  Speaker 1: Territory government should consider us putting in some penalties like that.
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  Speaker 2: I suppose you know, this is this piece of research
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  Speaker 2: is one extra piece of the puzzle. Right. We are
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  Speaker 2: myself and my colleague doctor Moran from Royal Damen Hospital
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  Speaker 2: where we're extending this line of research. So we're going
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  Speaker 2: to interview some of the people that were injured see
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  Speaker 2: how far those harms have penetrated their lives. And also
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  Speaker 2: we're going to run some longer follow up studies and
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  Speaker 2: I think that might be able to capture whatever I
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  Speaker 2: guess policy is implemented. I think so a great start is,
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  Speaker 2: you know, keeping the discussions people centered, so better messaging,
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  Speaker 2: more awareness, more lived experience stories, and really focusing on
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  Speaker 2: keeping people safe and encouraging safety.
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  Speaker 1: Tim, do you know I know that that We've got
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  Speaker 1: a message here from kjan It said, good morning Katie
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  Speaker 1: and crew. Can they put alcohol locks on the scooters?
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  Speaker 1: Is that something that is possible or do you know
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  Speaker 1: if they do anything like that in other locations.
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  Speaker 2: I think that's a cost issue for the companies that
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  Speaker 2: are rolling this out. It would certainly be possible. You
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  Speaker 2: can put a breath on a car, right, Yeah, same
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  Speaker 2: sort of thing. But I guess you know, you you
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  Speaker 2: when you get on the SCOO, you sign the agreement
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  Speaker 2: or whatever, helmet, haven't been drinking all that sort of stuff,
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  Speaker 2: and you know people are expected to stick by that.
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  Speaker 2: You know, it's it'll definitely be possible, And I guess
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  Speaker 2: that's something that could be considered by the companies, right
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  Speaker 2: if they truly want to keep the community and in
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  Speaker 2: the I guess center of their focus and what they do.
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  Speaker 1: Is there anything else that you sort of found quite
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  Speaker 1: interesting throughout the study that you've done. I guess for
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  Speaker 1: a lot of people, it's probably not a huge surprise
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  Speaker 1: that there are quite a few people being injured and
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  Speaker 1: not wearing helmets. And also while intoxicated, But was there
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  Speaker 1: anything else sort of quite interesting that you you know
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  Speaker 1: that you'd found.
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  Speaker 2: Just the high alcohol level. I mean, you know, the
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  Speaker 2: average was over triple triple the BAC route with so
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  Speaker 2: zero point one eight percent the highest point four nine percent,
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  Speaker 2: So pretty staggering numbers. I suppose not too many people
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  Speaker 2: using drugs and riding them. The cost is probably what's
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  Speaker 2: really I guess the most interesting that it's over three
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  Speaker 2: hundred and fifty thousand extra on the healthcare system and
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  Speaker 2: already strained healthcare system up here in the top end.
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  Speaker 2: You know, these physicians have a lot to deal with already,
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  Speaker 2: and so it would be really nice to see some
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  Speaker 2: more external stakeholder collaboration on how we could optimize our
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  Speaker 2: public health response. Tim, do you reckon?
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  Speaker 1: Like you know, again, through the research that you've done,
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  Speaker 1: I know that a lot of people have sort of
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  Speaker 1: raised this point as well, Do you reckon? A lot
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  Speaker 1: of it comes down to personal responsibility though too right.
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  Speaker 1: I mean, I don't get behind the wheel of a
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  Speaker 1: car after I've been drinking. I certainly wouldn't jump on
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  Speaker 1: a scooter. And I know, you know, I'm a little
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  Speaker 1: bit older these days, probably a bit more sensible than
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  Speaker 1: what I was when I was young. But doesn't you know,
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  Speaker 1: does it come down to that as well, taking a
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  Speaker 1: bit of personal responsibility.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, definitely. But at the same time, you know,
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  Speaker 2: those of us who might be a little bit more mature,
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  Speaker 2: bit more experience. You know, everybody makes mistakes, but if
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  Speaker 2: you have a good level of awareness and there's messaging
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  Speaker 2: out there that you know, warns people, then that's probably
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  Speaker 2: I think the best you can do. But of course
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  Speaker 2: the onus does does fall upon the person. But we
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  Speaker 2: we all make mistakes, field do silly things. So got
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  Speaker 2: to you know, put put the soft mass out right.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, I guess so, and you know, when it's
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  Speaker 1: having such an impact as well in terms of you know,
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  Speaker 1: the presentations to hospital and and the costs associated to
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  Speaker 1: I think we do need to do a bit more
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  Speaker 1: sort of recent bit more looking into this and what
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  Speaker 1: could be employ meant to try to keep people a
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  Speaker 1: little bit safer. Yeah, yeah, Tim, great to speak with
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  Speaker 1: you this morning. I really appreciate your time and really
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  Speaker 1: appreciate your talking us through you know, the study that
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  Speaker 1: has been done and the research that has been done.
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  Speaker 1: C do you Lecturer in psychology, Tim Piontkovski. Did I
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  Speaker 1: get it right? Tim? You did awesome, Thank you, Thanks mate.
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  Speaker 1: Great to speak to you this morning. You too,