Cardiff Trauma Pack for crash victims

Cardiff University in the UK recently announced it has secured funding to start a trial of their so-called Trauma Packs, in an effort to reduce the excessive number of fatalities on Namibian roads.
A life-saving trauma pack to treat the victims of road traffic collisions in developing countries will save “countless lives” after funding was secured for a major trial. The trauma packs have been developed in Wales by Professor Judith Hall of Cardiff University together with colleagues from Cardiff Metropolitan University.
They will be used to tackle the extremely high death rates on Namibia’s roads.
Non-medical specialists such as police, drivers, senior villagers and chiefs will be trained to use the low-cost packs in the first ‘golden hour’ when lives are saved after trauma. The Medical Research Council Public Health Intervention Development Scheme, which supports interventions that address an important global or UK public health issue, is providing funding of £150,000 for the trial. The packs, which contain life-saving equipment with simple instructions, have been created with clinicians from the Welsh National Health Service and industry partner BCB International. Namibia was chosen because Professor Hall already leads Cardiff University’s successful Phoenix Project here in collaboration with the University of Namibia. The Phoenix Project is part of Cardiff University’s Transforming Communities programme, which works with communities in Cardiff, Wales and beyond in areas including health, education and wellbeing. Phoenix supports Welsh Government’s Wales for Africa project. Professor Hall said: “I am delighted that the Phoenix Project is able to help with the introduction of the trauma packs in Namibia, a country with one of the worst road traffic accident problems in the world.
“The packs provide intuitive, life-saving equipment and easily understood instructions, and I expect them to save countless lives.” Professor Hall said she is delighted that the Namibia University of Science and Technology is also involved through its paramedic school. Professor Hywel Thomas, Pro Vice-Chancellor, Research, Innovation and Engagement, Cardiff University, said: “This wouldn’t have happened without the work of Cardiff University’s Phoenix Project, which is having a meaningful impact on people’s lives in Namibia in the areas of education, health, communication and science.
“I hope that this latest innovative intervention, involving many collaborators in Wales and Namibia, will eventually be expanded across Namibia and to developing countries elsewhere in the world.”