Screening Tests and Safety Interventions for Older Drivers Chris Hatherly

Scope of the Issue By in 3 Australians will be over 65 (ABS Population Projections) % will be over 85 (up from 1.4% in 2002)

Risks and Safety  Drivers over 60 far less likely than under 24s to crash their car.  Decrease in proportion of crashes, despite more older drivers.  Distance adjusted, older drivers have more crashes and a higher risk of injury or death.

Safety Priorities  Better Screening for Increased Road Safety For all road users  Improving Older Driver Safety & Maintaining Mobility

Safety Screening  Medical/Vision Screening SA – 70, 75, then annually ACT, WA – 75, then annually Qld – 75, then every 5 yrs Tas – 75, 77, 79, 80, then annually NSW – 80, then annually Victoria, NT - Nothing

Screening  Improved Screening Requires more research Visual, Physical and Psychological factors More confidence for Drivers, Doctors & Carers

Interventions  Better Understanding of Risks… Specific, maybe individualised, training programmes Modified driving behaviours Technological interventions – safer cars

ACT Older Driver and Hazard Perception Study  ARC Linkage Project  Examines Visual and Cognitive factors in relation to video based Hazard Perception in Older Drivers  Later On-Road Driving Performance & Technological Intervention

Visual Attention Task  Peripheral Visual Processing  In-Depth Examination of performance factors on Useful Field Of View (UFOV ® )

Spatial Performance Fields

Acknowledgements  NRMA ACT Road Safety Trust  Study Participants  Associate Professor Kaarin Anstey  Nic Cherbuin, Chip Scialfa, Mark Edwards  Natalie Chan  My Family