Potentially preventable road trauma deaths in Victoria

The majority of road trauma deaths will occur in the prehospital setting. However, these deaths have not been subject to the same scrutiny as in-hospital deaths. This study aimed to provide an overview of road trauma deaths and identify situations in which these deaths may have been prevented. Between 2008 and 2014, there were 1,374 deaths resulting from road traffic events in Victoria. Of the deaths that had a full autopsy and had attempted resuscitation from paramedics, 55 had ‘potentially survivable’ injuries. Of these, 45 were considered not preventable and 10 considered potentially preventable or preventable road trauma deaths.