A new study has revealed that medical caregivers are some of the most dangerous drivers on the road. The analysis, spearheaded by moneysupermarket.com, found that surgeons and general practitioners were more likely to receive the most at-fault claims, registering at numbers one and two, respectively.
For every 1,000 surgeons who drive a car, The Guardian notes, 361.2 of them get into an at-fault accident. As for GPs, the number was lower, though at 332.5, it wasn’t by much.
Worse yet is a look at the rest of the top 10:
- Health Visitor (No. 3) — 8 / 1,000
- Hospital Consultant (No. 4) — 6 / 1,000
- Clinical Psychologist (No. 5) — 2 / 1,000
- Psychotherapist (No. 6) — 8 / 1,000
- Probation Officer (No. 7) — 1 / 1,000
- District Nurse (No. 8) — 7 / 1,000
- Dental Surgeon (No. 9) — 9 / 1,000
- Community Nurse (No. 10) — 1 / 1,000
Compare these numbers to the least at-fault occupations, where none of that top 10 rose above 60 claims per 1,000, and a disturbing trend emerges. At least in the U.K., healthcare-related occupations accounted for nine of the top 10 most at-fault.
Kevin Pratt, a car insurance expert, said stress and tiredness might be behind the figures.
“One industry dominates the top 10 claims table – it seems those who have the responsibility of saving our lives and caring for our health are the most accident-prone drivers. …There is no doubt that surgeons, GPs and health visitors are all stressful jobs, so lack of time or tiredness could mean that these drivers are more likely to make an at-fault claim.”
While it isn’t clear whether these trends would translate to the U.S. job market, it could be worth looking into the occupations of your clients and making them aware of the correlation between occupation and driving risks. Here are some tips you can feel free to share in hopes of making the roadways safer for workers in high-stress fields as well as their fellow motorists.
Keep the phone out of your hand while driving. For doctors and nurses especially, there often doesn’t seem to be enough time in the day to get everything done. They utilize their mobile devices to amp up knowledge and productivity, but that can come at a great cost behind the wheel. It’s best not to text or look things up behind the wheel. If one does have to take a call, cars and phones with Bluetooth capabilities for hands-free talking are essentials.
Slow down. Study after study has shown that faster speeds result in more accidents. While medical professionals and other high-stress occupations may need to get where they’re going in a hurry, they’re not of much use to the general public if they crash on the way to their destinations.
Practice taking deep breaths behind the wheel. It may seem like a trivial action, but by controlling one’s breathing patterns and consciously taking slow, deep breaths, a high-stress worker may be able to curb anxiety behind the wheel and avoid making driving decisions that cause multi-car accidents.
