THERE ARE THREE SOURCES OF INFORMATION ON INVOLVEMENT OF ALCOHOL IN TRAFFIC CRASHES: POLICE ACCIDENT REPORTS WHICH GIVE RESULTS OF BREATH TESTS OF CONTROLLERS OF VEHICLES INVOLVED IN TRAFFIC CRASHES; REPORTS FROM CLERKS OF PETTY SESSIONS ON BLOOD ALCOHOL INFORMATION FOR THOSE PEOPLE KILLED IN TRAFFIC CRASHES FOR WHOM A CORONER REQUESTS A BLOOD ALCOHOL CONCENTRATION (BAC) ANALYSIS; REPORTS OBTAINED DIRECTLY FROM THE HEALTH COMMISSION'S DIVISION OF ANALYTICAL LABORATORIES (DAL), WHERE MOST POST MORTEM BLOOD SAMPLES ARE ANALYSED. THE LAST OF THESE THREE SOURCES IS CONSIDERED TO BE THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE WITH RESPECT TO ALCOHOL INFORMATION. ANALYSES WERE PERFORMED ON THE 701 FATALITIES FOR WHICH DAL DATA WERE AVAILABLE. THE RESULTS OF THESE ANALYSES INDICATE THAT THERE WERE SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN BAC FOR AGE AND SEX OF FATALITIES. HOWEVER, NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN BAC WAS DETECTED FOR CLASS OF ROAD USER, SURVIVAL TIME OF FATALITY AFTER CRASH OR MONTH OF CRASH. SIMPLE CURVES SUCH AS LOG-NORMAL AND PEARSON DISTRIBUTIONS WERE FITTED TO THE DATA. MIXED DISTRIBUTIONS SUCH AS SUMS AND PRODUCTS OF DISTRIBUTIONS WERE ALSO FITTED. THE MIXED DISTRIBUTIONS GAVE THE BEST FIT TO THE DATA, AS WOULD BE EXPECTED (A). THE NUMBER OF THE COVERING ABSTRACT OF THE CONFERENCE IS IRRD NO 255423.
Samenvatting