PLANNING FOR BETTER STANDARDS IN THE CARE OF THE NEUROLOGICAL SEQUELAE OF TRAUMA

Abstract

Injuries of the nervous system are common, and cause many deaths and much permanent disability. They inflict an enormous financial burden on the national economy; in Australia, adequate data are at present lacking, but a simple extrapolation from Canadian statistic suggests an estimate of more than $500,000,000 annually for the injuries resulting from road traffic accidents alone; if other causes of injury are included, the figure may reach one billion dollars. The neurosurgeon is specifically trained to undertake the management of all forms of neurological trauma; however, in Australia, and in many other countries, only a small minority of such injuries receive neurosurgical care. This is chiefly because the number of neurosurgeons at present available is small in relation to the tasks. Many cases must therefore be in the care of general or orthopaedic surgeons, especially in country centres, and it is important that these surgeons should have some basic neurosurgical training. The Neurosurgical Society of Australasia wishes to formulate a programme to ensure that opportunities for such training are available throughout Australia. This programme should also embody a national plan for research into the treatment and prevention of neurological trauma.