Enabling patients to drive is also important

BMJ 1995;311:1162-1163 (28 October)

Letters

Enabling patients to drive is also important

EDITOR,--Jo Alexander expresses concern about the lack of interestby health care professionals in an elderly woman's medical fitnessto drive.¹ This may not be an uncommon phenomenon. A more generalinterest in medical fitness to drive is recent, and many doctorsare unaware of the regulations for medical fitness to driveand have never had any training in the matter.²

The simple linking of advanced age to dangerous driving is,however, unhelpful. If Alexander's concern is for the loss ofinnocent life on the road then alcohol, youth, speeding, andpossibly testosterone should be targets, rather than old age.There is clear evidence that older people represent a low riskgroup³ but that those affected by diseases related to age representa higher risk. Geriatricians on both sides of the Atlantic havewritten about methods of assessing medical fitness to drive,and referral for multidisciplinary assessment is appropriatein . . . [Full text of this article]