Season 2, Episode 26: Motor Vehicle Crashes

Great trauma systems do not prevent trauma; they limit the carnage, disability, and chaos that are its consequence. Preventing trauma is the work of public policy and organizations like the Georgia Trauma Foundation. Seat belt laws, helmet laws, and air bag requirements have saved literally millions of lives.  But technology, policy, education, and awareness have limits. Reckless driving, driving while intoxicated, and the use of cell phones while driving are some of the root causes that speak to a crisis of personal accountability and the inherent irrationality of the human condition.  Worse, they decry hubris, selfishness, and lack of civility that jeopardizes not just the driver’s life, but the passengers and bystanders who are placed at risk.