DriveSafe/DriveAware: Promising New Off-Road Tests to Assess On-Road Performance

DriveSafe/DriveAware: Promising New Off-Road Tests to Assess On-Road Performance Authors: Anita C. Bundy, ScD, OTR, FAOTA Beth Cheal, MAppSc(OT), BAppSc(OT) Lynnette Kay, BAppSc(OTHons), PhD The University of Sydney Rehab on Road Introduction Driving is an essential activity of daily life, however any loss of function may impact driving safety. Improved survival rates after stroke or brain injury and an aging population mean greater numbers of people with cognitive impairment wish to resume or retain driving. Discussion Researchers have long attempted to develop tests that can predict driving performance with a sufficient accuracy to avoid the need for on road assessment. Drivers’ awareness of their driving performance and the driving environment has been identified as important contributors to safe driving. DriveSafe and DriveAware are presented as assessment tools that can be used to identify ‘at risk’ drivers. These tests categorize drivers as unsafe, safe or requiring further testing and have the potential to reduce the number of people requiring on road assessment by 50%. When compared against 22 commonly used tests, only Drive Safe and Drive Aware had sufficient sensitivity and specificity to be used as stand-alone tests to predict driving capacity Conclusion Successful identification of ‘at risk’ drivers is a community safety issue that DriveSafe and DriveAware can address. The test has the advantage of being administered in an office setting, with sufficient sensitivity and specificity to predict driving safety.