Is it time for a safety driving evaluation?
The American Occupational Therapy Association has identified December 4 – 8 as Older Driver Safety Awareness Week. The goal is to promote understanding of the importance of mobility and transportation to ensuring older adults remain active in the community—shopping, working or volunteering—with the confidence that transportation will not be the barrier to strand them at home.
Deciding if it is time to stop driving can be very difficult for an older individual as well as his/her family. Having a driver rehabilitation specialist complete a comprehensive driving assessment can be of great benefit.
If you regularly observe several of the following situations when you or a loved one is driving, it might be time for a safety driving evaluation.
- Driving too slowly
- Hitting curbs
- Failing to yield
- Getting lost in familiar places
- Moving into the wrong lane
- Exhibiting delayed responses to unexpected situations
- Driving with poor lane position
- Getting confused at roundabouts
- Needing instruction from passengers
- Acquiring scrapes/dents on car/garage
Our certified driver rehabilitation specialists at Easterseals Crossroads are occupational therapists with the knowledge of medical conditions and life changes that can affect driving. They can determine what component skills may be compromised and recommend a change in driving behavior or retirement from driving.
Contact us for more information about safety driving evaluations.
