Understanding Road Trauma and Injury in Lira District, Northern Uganda
*Presenting author
Nicole Tang*, Kyra Guy, Alyssa Ponrartana, Anna Woo, Edward Chau, Kenneth Odur, Cecilia Alonyo, Heather Wipfli
INTRODUCTION
RESULTS
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Road traffic accidents are responsible for 1.19 million deaths annually
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WHO has Uganda ranked among the countries with the highest traffic death rate at 29 car deaths per 100,000 people
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The number of fatal crashes in Uganda increased by 16.9% from 2021 to 2022
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The Kampala Road Safety Report 2023 indicated that motorcyclists accounted for 50% of road related deaths and pedestrians accounted for 43%.
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Risk factors of reckless driving, inappropriate driving experience, lack of respect to road traffic laws and vehicle roadworthiness, infrastructure deficiencies, alcohol and drug impairment, speeding, overloading vehicles, and lack of appropriate safety gear
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Current gaps in the research include limited data collection on road infrastructure and human driving and safety behavior
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To address this, we will collect data on on road safety beliefs, behaviors, and infrastructure to determine what should be addressed in future interventions.
OBJECTIVES:
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To assess risk factors for road trauma and injury in Lira District, Uganda.
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To assess community attitudes, knowledge, beliefs, and behaviors that influence road trauma and injury outcomes in Lira, District Uganda.
METHODS
Data Collection:
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The data collection was executed with a partnership between Energy in Action, Children’s Chance International Uganda (CCI), a community-based organization in Northern Uganda, and the University of Southern California.
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This community-based participatory research (CBPR) study was conducted in Lira District, Uganda in July 2024.
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Youth Public Health Ambassadors (YPHA) were trained on conducting key informant interviews and focus groups.
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This mix-methods study consisted of observations, survey tools, and key informant interviews assessing knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs on road safety and infrastructure.
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Key Informants were selected based on exposure to road traffic and included boda and bus drivers.
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Data was collected using paper forms and uploaded into Qualtrics for analysis.
CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS
The data highlights a need for strengthened road safety services and interventions in Lira District, Uganda. Results reveal gaps in services, road infrastructure, and safety behaviors which should be addressed in future interventions. Findings also highlight the need for further data collection on road safety beliefs, behaviors, and infrastructure in LMICs and beyond. Policy recommendations include: Enforcement of traffic laws and regulations through targeted operations focused on boda bodas, speed, driving under the influence, seatbelt use, proper driver registration, and distracted driving, increasing traffic personnel to handle road safety, data management to ensure traffic and safety decisions are evidence based, superior monitoring of CCTV to identify offenders and aid in crash investigations, driving classes and instruction, and investments and road infrastructure (sidewalks, lane lines etc.)
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to recognize our partners in this study. Energy in Action (EIA) initiated the project and provided training and research support, Children's Chance International (CCI) Uganda facilitated community outreach and research implementation, and the University of Southern California Global Research, Implementation, and Training (USC GRIT) Lab provided technical assistance with the protocol, survey design and data analysis. We are grateful for all our partners and hope this brief adequately reflects the efficacy of our collaboration.