Monash Memo - 8 August 2001

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Milestone no accident

In just 11 years, the Victorian Injury Surveillance and Applied Research System (VISAR) has investigated one million cases of injury.

A sobering statistic perhaps - one million Victorians hurt in the home or workplace - but the figure has given VISAR good reason to reflect and take pride in its achievements as a world leader in accident prevention.

On Thursday last week, VISAR announced details of its research into the one-millionth case study during a media launch on Albert Park Lake.

Among those who attended was Federal Minister for Work Cover Mr Bob Cameron, Monash University Accident Research Centre director Dr Ian Johnston, VicHealth CEO Dr Rob Moodie and chair of injury prevention at Monash Professor Joan Ozanne-Smith.

VISAR, which commenced in 1990, has become a world leader in collecting, developing and reporting on injury data, providing the research for the major injury prevention campaigns on bike, home, playground and pool safety.

Professor Ozanne-Smith told the launch that home injuries were at epidemic proportions, with about 1100 people each day in Australia being admitted to hospital emergency departments.

"The deaths and injury in Austalian homes would cause widespread industrial action and provoke major legislative reform by governments if they occurred in the workplace," Professor Ozanne-Smith said.

She said there was a need for change in community attitudes to safety in the home towards a similar philosophy to that which is in the workplace.