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PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION
The Ark-La-Tex is a large geographic region, comprising segments
of three states: East Texas, Northwest Louisiana and Southwest Arkansas.
Significant portions of the Ark-La- Tex consist of open roadways with
limited traffic enforcement, increasing the risk of motor vehicle crashes,
which may result in brain and spinal cord injuries. Traffic data for
Caddo Parish, Louisiana indicate that, 17 percent of licensed drivers
are between the ages of 15 and 24. However, during 1999, this age group
accounted for 52 percent of the motor vehicle crash injuries and fatalities.
Traffic crash fatalities in Caddo Parish and Bossier Parish, Louisiana,
increased 90 percent and 83 percent, respectively, from 1998 to 1999,
with teenaged drivers disproportionately represented in these crashes.
Factors contributing to this alarming data include impaired driving,
non-use of safety belts, failure to control speed and inexperience.
Traffic safety advocates in Louisiana sought to design, implement and
evaluate interventions targeting these risk factors.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
The Ark-La-Tex chapter of Think First was initiated in
1996 to prevent brain, spinal cord and other traumatic injuries to youth,
by educating students, community leaders and local legislators. Specific
objectives of the program are to:
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Administer an educational program targeting high school students,
using peer-to-peer traffic safety education
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Provide traffic safety education to communities and corporations
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Build community partnerships to help support and promote the Think
First initiative
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Collaborate with other organizations promoting traffic safety
to develop additional programs
STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES
Think First was originally developed in 1986 by the American
Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and the Congress of Neurological
Surgeons (CNS), to educate junior and senior high school students about
personal vulnerability and risk taking. The program stresses that young
people can have fun and exciting lives without hurting themselves. Its
primary message is: Use your mind to protect your body.
In 1996, a Louisiana neurosurgeon and his wife established a Think
First chapter in the Ark- La-Tex, to educate local youth about traffic
safety, and to promote cooperation over competition in area hospitals
and rehabilitation centers. The program coordinates with high schools,
community centers, hospitals, businesses and churches to provide 35
safety presentations each year. Educational materials on safety measures,
including motorcycle and bicycle helmet use, are developed by program
staff and distributed at each presentation. Think First of the
Ark-La-Tex also collaborates with local media to promote special events
and campaigns targeting safety and injury prevention. The program presentation
consists of four segments:
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Anatomy and injuries—A speaker discusses the anatomy/physiology
of the brain and spinal cord, and describes how they are affected
by traumatic injuries. Plastic models, posters and slides help illustrate
the basic facts
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On the Edge video—This video describes a variety
of activities that can result in serious injury, including domestic
and gang violence. Several young people with brain or spinal cord
injuries share their injury experiences
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A young speaker with a traumatic brain or spinal cord injury—An
age-appropriate speaker who has sustained a brain or spinal cord
injury shows students what can happen to them, and discusses how
their injuries could have been avoided
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Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel—EMS personnel
discuss injury prevention, reinforce prevention strategies, and
demonstrate their response at an injury scene. Proper bystander
behavior is also discussed
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