Letters
Assessments should be independent
EDITOR,--We agree with Jo Alexander that some elderly drivers are a hazard to themselves and other road users.1 The author is provocative, however, in suggesting that general practitioners may have a vested interest in keeping their patients on the road. Although the ability to drive to the surgery may reduce the need for home visits and prevent social isolation, we are sure that general practitioners would not knowingly put people's lives at risk.
We believe that general practitioners are not the appropriate people to assess whether their patients are fit to drive, for several reasons: good general health does not imply good control behind the wheel; the relationship between a doctor and patient, which has been built up over many years, may be ruined if the general practitioner has to stop the patient driving; and there is no standard assessment system, and general practitioners' decisions would be subjective. We believe
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- Jo Alexander
BMJ 1995 311: 269.[Full Text]
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