Speeding, weaving aggressively across lanes and endangering other people’s lives. These are common facets of the UAE’s driving culture. Anyone who lives here would have experienced how rampant this behaviour is on the road.
While this could be seen as the ordinary recklessness of young people the issue goes much deeper and extends across age groups. Many people are knowingly careless and will text while driving or ignore a red light. Sometimes people drive fast because they are late and sometimes they drive aggressively because they are tired or stressed.
It must be stressed that nothing can justify endangering the safety of others, but there may be some merit in examining the results of a 2014 study by the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, a world leading public health and medical research institute. It was published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry and showed a strong link between Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in adult drivers and traffic accidents.
In the largest study reported in the issue, researchers used data collected between 2006 and 2009 from 17,408 Swedish adults with ADHD. They found that adults with ADHD were about 50 per cent more likely to be in serious traffic accidents, compared to people without the condition.
The UAE should take careful note. In this country, road accidents are believed to be the second major cause of death and the leading cause of deaths among children. This is not to blame adult ADHD for all of these accidents. But when it comes to serious public health issues as such, every possible factor should be taken into consideration. In any public health issue, prevention requires that we identify risk factors and address them before they cause serious harm.
UAE-based psychologists have noted the prevalence of ADHD among adults. All too often, it goes undiagnosed because many of the patients are simply unaware of their condition. Psychologists anecdotally say that the prevalence of ADHD here is in line with global statistics, which is approximately 3 to 10 per cent of school-aged children. An estimated 60 per cent of them will continue to suffer from symptoms that will affect the way they function as adults and will lead to potential professional and personal problems.
ADHD causes people to be overly active, have trouble paying attention and display impulsive behaviour. When people with ADHD get behind the wheel, their hyperactivity can lead them to speed and commit other driving offences. Their poor impulse control can cause a spontaneous shift in mood to quick anger or even rage, which can put road users’ lives at risk.
When discussing road safety in the UAE, we rarely mention ADHD, which may be contributing substantially to the high accident rates on our roads.
But it’s not surprising that it is ignored, considering the general lack of awareness about mental health issues here and in many other parts of the world. As a result, as with other mental health issues, the UAE lacks national data for ADHD in adults.
The issue is worth exploring. There are many questions to which we need answers. How prevalent is it in this country? To what extent does it affect the driving culture?
A 2010 study conducted by the Ministry of Health and the World Health Organisation (WHO) as part of the National Priority Health Research workshop, noted that many road traffic injuries – a major cause for concern in the UAE because of their high prevalence – could be averted simply by addressing adult ADHD.
One way to do that is by requiring compulsory screening for new drivers before they get their driving licence. If ADHD is detected, treatment can significantly make a difference in their behaviour.
This was proved in the same Swedish study that found that taking medication to control some of ADHD symptoms may reduce that increased risk – at least among men. The researchers found that overall, between 41 per cent and 49 per cent of accidents caused by men with ADHD might have been prevented if they had been on medication.
There have been many efforts to change the driving culture, starting from awareness campaigns to more speeding radars to tougher fines and punishment. These are badly needed.
But we also have to acknowledge that there could be another factor when it comes to the issue of bad driving here in the UAE. All drivers with ADHD need to manage their treatment to reduce the risk they pose to themselves, other drivers and pedestrians on the road.
aalmazrouei@thenational.ae
@AyeshaAlmazroui
