NBC TODAY show highlights Older
Driver Safety ; Albany OT and her mother
discuss ways they have addressed driver safety
BETHESDA, Md., Feb. 2
/PRNewswire/ -- The top-rated morning news show TODAY
performed an important public service, highlighting the
issue of older driver safety. The report featured Linda
McCumber, an occupational therapist from Albany, New
York and her Mother, Alma Raab from Long Island. They
are working together to address the proper actions that
will enable Alma to keep driving safely as she gets
older.
"My work as an
occupational therapist gives me special insight into the
aging process," said McCumber. "My Mother would often
drive from her home on Long Island to visit me, but the
aging process was making the drive more difficult. I
knew that there were steps we could take that would
enable her to continue driving safely."
The American
Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) in conjunction
with National Highway Transportation Safety
Administration and the Centers for Disease Control has
been promoting the use of OT as an intervention for
older drivers.
Occupational
therapists have the science-based knowledge to
understand progressive conditions and life changes that
can affect driving. Because occupational therapists take
the time to understand the role that driving plays in
your life, they are able to help individuals make a
smoother transition from driving to using other forms of
transportation. In doing so, they help people maintain
their autonomy, independence, and sense of worth.
Occupational
therapists can help families address safety for older
drivers by taking the following steps:
-- Evaluate older
adults to determine any physical, visual, or
cognitive
limitations that could affect how he or she is able to
drive a car.
-- Conduct an
on-the-road driving test to determine how problems
identified in
the evaluation affect a person's ability to drive
safely.
-- Provide
training to drivers that improves their ability to drive
safely.
-- Recommend
adaptive equipment and train older drivers how to use
the equipment to
help them continue to drive and get around safely and appropriately.
-- Help the older
adult identify alternate forms of transportation,
such as public
transportation, if it becomes clear that the client
should no
longer drive or should modify when they drive.
-- Consult with
friends and family of an older driver about his or her abilities and
how they can ensure the older adult is able to
continue
participating in activities that give meaning to his or
her
life.
-- Assist the
older adult who is no longer able to drive to identify
meaningful
activities that do not require driving.