The Effects Of Driving Cessation On Children

MacReady, N. (2004, August). Is elderly patient driving? Watch for red flags. Clinical Psychiatry News, 32(8), 41. Retrieved from http://db16.linccweb.org/login?url=http://go.galegroup.com.db16.linccweb.org/ps/i.do?p=AONE&sw=w&u=lincclin_mdcc&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE%7CA121779767&asid=27681e9ea56b005a1b91df71d0e88519

In the article, “Teenage Drivers? Be Very Afraid” (2016), Bruce Feiler, writer for the New York Times, insists parents to “get much more involved” in their teenager’s driving life and in the progress increase the chances of them driving more safely. Feiler conveys the idea of safer driving by juxtaposing a variety of parent involvement in a teenager’s life (“back off” versus “get more involved”), by providing statistics and evidence of possible perils (motor vehicle accidents), and by establishing certain rules that their child must follow (no use of phones). Using advice from doctors, the author emphasizes the importance of parent involvement in order to influence teenagers to bring driving violations to a halt; in fact, Feiler believes that

Over the years, seniors experience a gradual decline in their physical and mental performance. While there is no getting around this fact, the rate at which this decline occurs isn't etched in stone. The following suggestions will slow this decline and extend a senior's ability to drive safely for many more years.

This essay identifies the social issue of drinking and driving. Many PSAs have depicted the effects of drinking and driving, but the “There’s No Age Limit” video depicts a very gruesome perspective. This PSA caught my attention because it shows how drinking affects more than just the driver. Drinking affects the ability of ones’ reaction time, so driving while under the influence of an alcoholic beverage puts the driver as well as other people on the road at risk.

Being able to operate a motor vehicle takes complex skills, body movements and the ability to judge situations and act in a short time. “Older drivers may experience a slower reaction time, a loss in flexibility and muscle strength, sleepiness caused by medicines, and a reduced ability to concentrate and focus on the task at hand” (Should Elderly Drivers be Retested?). Aging should not be the main reason to stop driving but the affects of aging call for a good enough reason to retest elderly drivers.

So as long as I’ve been driving I’ve always recalled my mother’s voice saying, “Don’t drink and drive. Sleep at a friend’s house or pay for a taxi. Don’t Do It echoing in the back of my head.” So imagine my surprise when I found out that “driver distraction is actually more important now than critical crash factors such as fatigue, drug ingestion and alcohol intoxication”. According to John Lee, author of Driver Distraction and Inattention: Advances in Research and Countermeasures, “Road vehicle crashes are predicted to become the third largest cause of death and injury globally by 2020”.

Debate over whether the driving age should be raised to the age of eighteen has been an ongoing battle among state lawmakers. Of course if you were a sixteen year old teenager, who has waited to obtain the privilege to drive or one who due to family circumstances needs to drive in order to get to work, school or after school activities, you would not be overly enthused with the decision to raise the driving age to eighteen. On the other side of the coin, a twenty-five year old seasoned driver can point out the unsafe practices of youthful drivers and have their concerns echoed by a variety of news articles toting the statistics of teenage driving fatalities. These “teenage drivers are particularly dangerous, so delaying when they get a license will make the roads much safer for everyone” (Endersby). Safety experts, who have studied numerous studies of sixteen year-old teens driving habits proclaimed that they are by far at a higher rate for driving accidents than older teens. Scientific studies at the National Institutional of Health in Bethesda, Maryland show that “the weak link, known as the executive branch, which is the part of the brain that weights risks, makes judgments and controls impulsive behaviors has not fully developed and is the reason teenagers do

Many of today’s drivers have came in contact with someone under the influence while driving, and if not will. Whenever one is under the influence of drugs or alcohol, they are not only putting their lives in danger, but others as well. On average there is eight teenagers a day that die from drinking and driving. Another statistic is that every forty minutes there is someone dying from alcohol impairment. Being under the influence is a huge distraction. Drinking and driving literally causes one third of traffic fatalities. Drinking and driving accidents can happen during the day, but they mainly happen between the hours of midnight and three am. Being under the influence causes huge impairment with how people think, see, and do. Most of the time if these people were sober they would have more common sense on what to do and not to

Driving is a skill and a necessity in today’s society. As with everything that is designed to help people there are those who take advantage of it and put others in danger. According to a study done by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (2017) some of the most dangerous driving habits that occur in the United States are; speeding, distracted driving, and driving tired. To improve our society we need to focus on these habits and try to break them. In doing so, it will make traveling by road much safer and will reduce the number of people that are killed in motor vehicle accidents.

I often get asked why I don’t drive and my simple response to those who ask is simply that I have no interest, which isn’t necessarily true. The real reason I cower away from what I consider to be a huge responsibility of driving is because I have witnessed firsthand the crippling effects cars can have on the fragile human life. In February of my senior on a day that I had just happened to be home from school I received a text from an unusual number it was my best friend’s brother who had texted me to inform me that his sister, a girl who was at my house five times a week, someone who was attached to my hip had been hit by a car. The text was simple and nonchalant which made me think it couldn’t have been too bad.

In the United States, driving is often equated to freedom and independence. When a senior is faced with the prospect of losing their ability to drive, it can have dramatic emotional consequences. Since there is not a standard rate at which health deteriorates, there is no one age at which a senior's ability to safely drive is effected. What we do know, however, is that drivers over the age of 70 are more likely to be involved in fatal automobile accidents than drivers of other age groups.

“An eighty-six year old man killed ten people and injured more than seventy when he drove his Buick into a crowded farmers market in California. In Florida, an eighty-four year old woman drove her car through a window of a Sears and into a cash register and employee” (Murphy). Sadly enough, instances like these are becoming more and more prevalent and require immediate action. It is imperative that a more comprehensive approach be taken when deciding the competence of elderly drivers. Laws must be put into action to mandate and administer testing and re-examining of the skills and eligibility of this group. Equally important, we must consider those who will no longer be able to drive, and ensure their transportation and occupational needs

Many concerns have been expressed about the potential dangers elderly drivers present when operating a vehicle. Mental and physical capabilities begin to decline as a person ages. When their health deteriorates, the well being of other individuals on the road is at stake. Many elderly drivers should not drive due to their medical history and the fact that they might suffer from possible side effects from taking multiple prescription medicines. In addition, local organizations and neighbors can provide transportation for the elderly to keep them from endangering themselves and others. The threat senior citizens create when driving can be avoided if they are tested to ensure their competence as a driver.

I think elderly drivers should be testing twice a year depending of their age. Driving has a lot of responsibility as you get older you reflex are not the same your eye vision stars going blurry I think after 65 of age the public safety should have more programs and more testing for their physical and their medical history sometimes know they don’t have a choice family members won’t help them to take them to doctors appoint.t

While my Granny’s passengers knew about her ineptitude for driving, other drivers were unaware of the danger passing them by. Individuals over 85, who drive, have a four times higher fatality rate than teenagers (Landphair). There are many news stories regarding elderly people who have caused numerous deaths by simply confusing the gas and brake pedals (Landphair). Some contribute these accidents to a decline in vision and cognitive functioning, two factors essential to safe driving. Studies have also shown that if older individuals are under pressure, they tend to make more driving errors than teens (Charles).