Some characteristics of victims in road traffic accidents treated at Mocchau general hospital Sonla province (2012-2013)

JOURNAL OF MILITARY PHARMACO-MEDICINE No7-2015

SOME CHARACTERISTICS OF VICTIMS IN ROAD TRAFFIC
ACCIDENTS TREATED AT MOCCHAU GENERAL HOSPITAL
SONLA PROVINCE (2012 - 2013)
Hoang Trung Khai*; Nguyen Thi Thinh*
SUMMARY
Objectives: A cross-sectional descriptive research aims to identify several characteristics in
road traffic accident patients in need for emergency treatment in Mocchau District General
Hospital. Results and discussions: Men suffering from road traffic accidents are 3 times as high
as women (74.1% versus 25.9%). The victims in traffic accidents are mainly in the age group of
20 - 29, accounting for 30.0%. These people come from Kinh and Thai ethnics (42.0% and
38.3%), whereas this rate is relatively low in other ethnic groups (the H’mong, Muong). Most
victims are farmers (58.7%), victims with high literacy occupy 40.8%. The timing of road traffic
accidents occur mainly in the evening and at night higher than in the morning (41.5% versus
19.4%). In terms of weather factor, tracffic accidents often happen at the time of the sunshine
rather than the time of shadow. The flat road is the common cause of traffic accident. Up to
19.1% of the accidents are due to no wearing helmets. Situations leading to traffic accidents
are: self-falling off motorcycles (35.6%), motorcycle - motorcycle collision (23.8%), automobile motorcycles collision (15.5%).
* Key words: Road traffic accidents; Victims; Mocchau District; Sonla province.

INTRODUCTION
Road traffic accident is the leading cause
of death and disability in the world.
According to the WHO, every year there
are 1.3 million deaths and 50 million injuries
caused by road traffic accidents, causing
great damage on economy and health.
In Vietnam, the overview report by the
Ministry of Health in 2012 showed that the
number of accidents, the number of

injuries and deaths from accidents and
injuries, especially road traffic accidents
increased within 10 years. Deaths from
injuries and accidents of all kinds are

leading cause of mortality in hospital.
There are on average day about 30
people deaths and 70 people injured.
Sonla is a mountainous province in the
Northwest with high rate of accidents.
General Hospital of Mocchau district
receives an annual average of more than
400 cases of injuries; in which, more than
50% is due to traffic accident. This study
aims to: Examine some factors related to
patients with road traffic accidents in order
to propose the appropriate measures in
order for prevention or improvement in
quality as well as give the first aid and
emergency treatment for patients.

* Hadong Medical College
Corresponding author: Nguyen Thi Thinh ()

13


JOURNAL OF MILITARY PHARMACO-MEDICINE No7-2015

SUBJECTS AND METHODS

1. Subjects.
407 victims in road traffic accidents
were treated at Emergency Department,
General Hospital Mocchau district, Sonla
in 2 years between 2012 and 2013. Patients
treated to stabilize and rehabilitate due to
sequelae caused by traffic accidents were
excluded.

Men with road traffic accidents are
nearly 3 times as high as women (74.2%
vs 25.8%). Patients in the group of 20 - 29
years old with road traffic accidents
account for the highest rate (30.0%), the
age group under 6 and over 60 years old
has the low rate (3.4% vs 5.4%).
H’Mong
9.1%

2. Methods.
A cross-sectional and descriptive study
was combined with analysis of secondary
data.

Muong
7.6%

The subjects of the study are patients
who were treated at Emegency Department,
Mocchau district, General Hospital within

2 years.

Thai
7.6%

3. Data collection.
Use the paper to record the cases of
road traffic accidents based on Decision
1356/QD-BYT dated 18/4/2008.
RESULTS
Table 1: Distribution of patients in road
traffic accidents according to gender and
age (n = 407).
PERSONAL
CHARACTERISTICS

NUMBER

RATE (%)

Male

301

74.1

Female

105

25.9

Age group: < 6 years

14

3.4

6 - 15

32

7.9

16 - 19

65

20 - 29

Gender

Others
2.9%

Kinh
42.0%

Chart 1: Distribution of patients with road
traffic accidents according to ethnicity

(n = 407).
Patients with road traffic accidents treated
in hospital are mainly from ethnic group of
Kinh and Thai (occupying the highest rate
42.0% and 38.3%). Ethnic group of H’mong
and Muong are 9.1% and 7.6%, respectively.
Other ethnic groups take up 2.9%.
Table 2: Distribution of traffic accident
victims according to education level (n = 407).
NUMBER

RATE
(%)

Illiteracy

16

3.9

16.0

Literacy

59

14.5

122

30.0

Primary (level 1)

53

13.0

30 - 39

73

17.9

40 - 49

49

12.0

Lower secondary (level 2)

166

40.8

50 - 59

30

7.4

High School (level 3)

68

16.7

≥ 60

22

5.4

Colleges and universities

45

11.1

14

EDUCATION LEVEL


JOURNAL OF MILITARY PHARMACO-MEDICINE No7-2015

Patients with road traffic accidents treated in hospital are mostly at the secondary
education level, which accounts for the highest rate (40.8%). Meanwhile the lowest rate
is found in the illiterate patients (3.9%).

Table 3: Distribution of traffic accidents according to occupation (n = 407).
OCCUPATION

NUMBER

RATE (%)

Students

68

16.7

Civil servants

34

8.4

Farmers

239

58.7

Workers and artisans

6

1.5

Traders, free labors

35

8.6

Others (retired people, children)

25

6.1

Victims as farmers constitute the highest rate (58.7%).
In the morning
19.4%

In the evening
night 41.5%

In the afternoon
39.1%

Chart 2: The timing of occurrence of road traffic accidents (n = 407).

6h00 < 8h00

8h00 < 11h30

11h30 < 3h30

13h30 < 16h30

16h30 < 18h30

18h30 < 19h30

19h30 < 23h30

23h30 < 6h30

Chart 3: Rate of road traffic accidents victims according to the daytime (n = 407).
15


JOURNAL OF MILITARY PHARMACO-MEDICINE No7-2015

More than 80% of road traffic accidents Not
occur from afternoon to evening and at night.
Not
wearing
In which, at the time between 13h30 wearing
helmet
< 16h30 and 19h30 - < 23h30 is the most helmet
19.1%
frequent (26.1% vs 24.8%) and the lowest 19,1%
number of traffic accidents happens in the
morning from 6h30 to < 8h00.
Entering a
curve 9.9%

Wearing
Wearing
helmet
80.9%
helmet
80,9%
Chart 6: Road traffic accidents caused
by

Uphill
5.7%

motorcyclists’ wearing helmets (n = 340).
Drunk
12.8%

Downhill
15.1%

In driving
in the flat
road
69.3%
Not drunk
87.2%

Chart 4: Status of movement on the road
at the time of the accident (n = 407).

Chart 7: Status of drinking wine or beer
before occurring road traffic accidents.

69.3% of patients in road traffic accidents
is as a result of driving on the flat road.

Table 4: The situations responsible for
road traffic accidents (n = 407).

Others
25.3%

Fog
13.0%

Rainy
17.5%

Sunny
44.2%

Chart 5: Characteristics of weather when
occurring road traffic accidents (n = 407).
The road traffic accidents occurring on
sunny weather take up the highest rate
(44.2%), followed by rain (17.55 %), fog
(13.0%) and others (25.3 %).
16

MECHANISM

NUMBER

%

Motorcycles - motorcycles

97

23.8

Cars - motorcycles

63

15.5

Cars - walking

12

2.9

Motorcycles - walking

35

8.6

Self-falling motorcycles

145

35.6

Others

55

13.5

80.9% of patients with traffic accidents
is due to motorcyclists’ wearing helmets,
the rest (12.8%) lies in the group of no
wearing helmets. The victims driving under
the influence of alcohol and self-falling off
vehicles account for the highest rate (35.6%),
following by collision between motorcycle -


JOURNAL OF MILITARY PHARMACO-MEDICINE No7-2015

motorcycle (23.8%), car - motorcycle (15.5%),
motorcycle - walking (8.6%), car - walking
(2.9%) and other mechanisms (13.5%).
DISCUSSION
Our research findings in 407 patients
with road traffic accidents is also consistent
with that of several authors at home and
in the world on patients’ characteristics,

conditions and situations leading to road
traffic accidents:
- Characteristics of patients:
Male drivers, especially young men from
20 - 29 years old at high risk of accidents
are those who drive at high speed, overtake
carelessly and drink wine/beer before.
Although Mocchau is the area with many
ethnic groups, ethnic group of Kinh and
Thai still account for over 50% of the
population. Therefore, the traffic frequency
is also higher, but they are careless while
joining in traffic.
Many reports or research results on
road traffic accidents show that accidents
happen to all the levels of education,
people with higher education can be a
better understanding of the harmful effects,
consequences and precautious measures
from traffic accidents. The research results
indicate that patients treated in hospital
are chiefly farmers, taking up the highest
rate in comparison with other professions.
- Characteristics of time, road and weather:
Our research results show that 80.6%
of traffic accidents occurs in the afternoon,
evening and at night, in accordance with
the research result of 3,411 victims of
road traffic accident in Hanoi, and also
similar to that in General Hospital of

Bacgiang province and General Hospital
of Bacgiang district in 2011. It can be
explained that in the afternoon, after lunch
time, especially on hot days, the victims
drink wine/beer, whereas in the evening
and at night, due to limited vision, the
accident may happen.
In this study, traffic accidents occur in
all types of roads and mainly on the flat
road. This result is consistent with that of
the study on 1,193 emergency patients,
who were treated in Khanhhoa General
Hospital in 6 months of 2011 with 79.18%
traffic accidents occurring on flat road. This
is related to the victims’ subjectiveness
and speeding.
Accidents often happen when it is
sunny, this result is similar to the research
by Le Trung Hai on road traffic accident in
Khanhhoa General Hospital within six
months in 2011: 94.31% of accidents occur
in good weather.
- On situations causing accidents:
In our research, motorcycle - related traffic
accidents constitute 83.5%; of which, 1/3
of patients are self-falling (35.6%), nearly
1/4 is due to motorcycles - motorcycles
collision (23.8%) and 1/6 is brought about
by collision between cars and motorcycles

(15.5%), motorcycle - walking (8.6%). This
result corresponds with that on patients in
traffic accidents in hospitals of Vietnam
and consequently, accidents are very closely
related to motor vehicles. Particularly, the
rate of head injuries and traumatic brain
injury are associated very tightly with the
rate of motorcyclists not wearing helmets.
17


JOURNAL OF MILITARY PHARMACO-MEDICINE No7-2015

Our research results reveal that drunk
drivers account for 12.8%. This result is
lower than that on 1,453 patients in road
traffic accidents in need for emergency
treatment in six provincial and district
hospitals of three provinces: Hanam,
Ninhbinh, Bacgiang. This rate was 42.5%
between 11 - 2010 and 03 - 2011 and 46.4%
in 2011 in another study on 593 patients
in two hospitals of Bacgiang province.
CONCLUSION

car - motorbike: 15.5%, motorbike - walking:
8,6% and car - walking: 2.9%. Driving under
the influence of alcohol: 12.8%.
REFERENCES
1. The Ministry of Health. The situation of

injuries in Vietnam for 5 years (2006 - 2010).
Proceedings of the Mid Term Review
Conference of implementation of the Directive
and Planning of Preventing Injury in
community of health service in the period of
2011 - 2015. Hanoi. 2011.

1. Men at high risk of road traffic accidents
are three times as high as women (74.1%
versus 25.9%). The age group of 20 - 29
is predominant (30.0%). The victims are
mainly from ethnic group of Kinh and Thai
(42.0% and 38.3%), other ethnic groups
such as Hmong, Muong... have lower rate
of accidents. 58.7% of the patients are
farmers. Secondary high school students
in traffic accident take up 40.8%.

2. The Ministry of Health. Report on results
of implementation of Decision No. 1356/QDBYT dated on 18/04/2008 of the Ministry of
Health on issuing forms of recording and
reporting the cases of traffic accident with
hospital admission. 2011.

2. The time of road accidents occurs
mainly in the evening and at night, higher
than in the morning (41.5% versus 19.4%).
Moreover, accidents are attributable to the
sunny condition rather than shady condition.
Flat road is responsible for traffic accidents,

occupying high rate (69.3%). Up to 19.1%
of the accidents are due to drivers not
wearing helmets.

4. The Ministry of Health - Vietnam
Administration of HIV/AIDS Control. The
global report on preventing injury of road
traffic. Medical Publisher. 2004.

3. Situations leading to the road traffic
accidents: self-falling motorcycles: 35.6%,
motorbike - motorbike collision: 23.8%,

6. World Health Organization. Global status
report on alcohol and health. World Health
Organization. Switzerland. 2011, p.286.

18

3. Vietnam Ministry of Health - Medical
Publishing House. Common Report on the
health situation of Vietnam in 2012. Medical
Publisher. 2012, p.25.

5. Tran Thi Ngoc Lan, Luong Mai Anh,
Nguyen Thuy Linh et al. Evaluation of alcohol
usage in patients of traffic accidents in 3
provinces of Hanam, Ninhbinh, Bacgiang
11/2010 - 3/2011. Journal of Medical Practice.
No 786/2011, 2011, p.45-51.