A significant increase in hospital admissions have been reported due to accidents during the New Year season, health officials noted.
The Head of the Accident Prevention Unit at the Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD) Unit of the Ministry of Health, Community Physician Dr. Samitha Sirithunga stated that approximately 29,000 people are currently receiving hospital treatment due to accident-related injuries.
He further noted that around 1.3 million people are hospitalized each year due to accidents, with the highest proportion of admissions occurring during the New Year festive period.
Providing further comments, Dr. Sirithunga said:
“Compared to the Western Province, a higher number of accidents are observed in other provinces. Most hospital admissions are due to road traffic accidents. Following that, falls, animal bites, assaults, and injuries also contribute significantly. However, there is a relative decrease in injuries caused by fireworks. We all need to be more attentive in preventing these accidents.”
