In reply: We can only agree with Gorton about the high level of costs to families and communities caused by road trauma. While our report attempted to provide estimates of the immediate, direct costs to the medical system,1 we were well aware of the additional costs to families, particularly those from rural and remote areas, as they attempted to support their injured family member. These costs, unfortunately, are difficult to quantify, and have a long-term impact on families and communities. Although our study was able to estimate some of the costs associated with road trauma, there is a need for prospective studies with specially formulated costing tools to capture the costs more fully.
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- 1 School of Medicine and Dentistry, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD.
- 2 Statewide Clinical Coordination and Retrieval Services, Queensland Health, Townsville, QLD.
- 3 Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW.
- 4 Community Based Health Care Research Unit, Royal Rehabilitation Centre Sydney, Sydney, NSW.
- 1. O’Connor TM, Hanks HA, Elcock MS, et al. The medical and retrieval costs of road crashes in rural and remote northern Queensland, 2004–2007: findings from the Rural and Remote Road Safety Study. Med J Aust 2009; 190: 54-56. <MJA full text>
- 2. Cheffins TE, Blackman R, Veitch C. Rural GPs’ management of vehicle related trauma. Aust Fam Physician 2007; 36: 782-784.