Asia-Pacific injury prevention conference to take place in Hanoi
Resource type: News
Vietnamese News Agency (VNA) |
The second Asia-Pacific Conference on Injury Prevention will be held in Hanoi from Nov. 4-6, attracting the participation of 300 domestic and foreign delegates.
According to the Preventive Medical and Environmental Department under the Health Ministry, the conference will offer an opportunity for participants to exchange experiences in injury prevention and further cooperation in the field.
Traffic safety and injury prevention for children are two of the issues that will be high on the agenda.
Speaking at a press briefing on Oct. 30, Nguyen Thi Hong Tu, Deputy Head of the Preventive Medical and Environmental Department said that the event is the final step in wrapping up a Hanoi Declaration calling for regional governments’ concerns regarding injury and violence prevention.
Tu said the event is significant in the current context of injuries and violence being leading precursors of disease in the Asia-Pacific region.
According to statistics compiled by the World Health Organisation (WHO), an estimated 3.1 million deaths are caused by injuries each year, with the Asia-Pacific region contributing more than half to the total.
WHO’s Head Representative to Vietnam Jean-Marc Olive said that the Vietnamese Government has a high awareness of the importance of injury prevention and has offered both practical and effective solutions to this problem.
The WHO official affirmed that promulgation of Decree 32, forcing motorcycle riders to wear safety helmets was one of the Vietnamese Government’s most effective actions in preventing injuries.
The rate of cranial injuries to cyclists and motorcyclists dropped by 16 percent after just three months implementation of the decree, Olive said.