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statutory and voluntary organisations for full utilisation of all
available services in the interests of her patient. Familiarity with
and the maintenance of close liaison with the personnel of the social
agencies that can supply material help to her patient is essential for
the full performance of her duties.
Prevention of Accidents
Accidents whether they occur in the home, on the roads, or
elsewhere result in appreciable morbidity and mortality yet the thing
about them is that they are preventable.
We are rather inclined to separate road safety from home safety
and exclude both from the content of Health Education, whereas in
my view safety cannot be divided up nor divorced from general
Health Education which must include accident prevention in the
promotion of general health.
Health h is a state of physical, mental and social well being,
which can be destroyed in a number of ways, for example, by illness,
by infection or through injury. Health Education uses the
knowledge that has accumulated over the years in matters concerning
health which it endeavours to impart to people with a view to
helping them to decide the kind of conduct they may adopt which
is conducive to the promotion of health and well being. This also
is what is required to be done in safety education, whether it be
home safety, road safety, or safety at work. There is a twofold
problem in safety education. The first one is to teach people what
they can do to prevent accidents to themselves and to others, and
secondly what they can do should an accident occur.
In safety education the most urgent need is obviously with
children and young people, which does not mean that safety for the
elderly should be neglected. Children should be advised how to
develop situation judgement, how to assess hazards for themselves
Life itself is full of challenges from the environment and it is not
possible or desirable to avoid contact into the various hazards that
exist on the roads, in the home or at workplaces.
Programmes of safety education can best be integrated with the
work of field workers in Health Departments, and the Health Department
through its links with the Education Department, Local
Hospitals and Voluntary Organisations is well fitted to undertake
this responsibility. To carry out an extensive programme, the
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