Safe Community Lidköping

The Market Place of Lidköping

Country: Sweden
Number of inhabitants: 38,000
Programme started year: 1983-1984
International Safe Communities Network Membership: Designation year: 1989, 2003, 2008
Info address on www for the Programme: www.lidkoping.se/folkhalsa

Application report: 2008

For further information contact:

Elisabeth Brandt,
Public Health Coordinator
Lidköpings kommun
Kommunledningskontoret
SE-531 88 Lidköping
Sweden
Phone: +46(0)510-77 12 81
Fax: +46 (0)510-77 01 88
E-mail: elisabeth.brandt@lidkoping.se

www.lidkoping.se

The programme covers the following safety promotion activities:

Children 0-16 years:

(se also age group 16-24 and schools and traffic)

•  All pregnant women are screened with regard to violence.

•  All pregnant women are offered screening if they are at risk by using drugs, alcohol or tobacco.

•  Parents are given the opportunity to rent a baby safety-seat for their car.

•  Regularly informations about safety at the child health care centres including information about safety equipment and about good, safe products. There is a bag of safety items available for demonstration.

•  A checklist is included in the child's health journal with detailed information about accident risks in a child's environment.

•  When the child is 8 months old and 3 years old respectively the parents are offered the opportunity to buy a helmet at a reduced price,

•  Support from a child psychologist is available in Primary healthcare to prevent family ill-health.

•  Courses about child safety are available from the Red Cross

•  “Hitta vilse” (find your way) courses for pre-school children. Pre-schools teach children to find their way if they get lost.

•  Parental support: General and specific one-on-one parental support or in groups

•  The Fire and Rescue Service runs fire safety training for all children in pre-school classes and for year 5 students.

•  Staff at the swimming baths measure swimming proficiency of year 5 students.

•  The “TRYGGVE” concept is a drug prevention based on the fact that a minimum of 2-3 children from each school class has a parent with a drug/alcohol dependency. The concept provides constant support to the school's staff groups and group activities for children and teenagers. .

•  Information to parents of children in years 7-9 about young people's alcohol habits, accidents and violent crimes and a folder about giving alcohol to young people.

•  Adults patrol the streets of the town on Friday nights and sometimes on Saturday nights.

•  Alcohol-free discos are arranged by adults, sports associations, Culture & Leisure. The Fire and Rescue Service organises drug-free discos with evacuation drills for years 4-9 Alcohol-free end-of-term parties are arranged for senior schools

•  The Police visit all year 8 students and inform them about the dangers of drugs, the law and their rights etc. The Police work with information and presence among young people to minimise alcohol and drug consumption and thereby also minimise assaults.

•  The Swedish Federation for Study Promotion has group activities including physical activities for:

•  Overweight children who are not members of a sports association

•  Children and young people from an immigrant background

•  Children and young people with a physical disability

•  Teenage girls who are overweight and are not members of a sports association

•  Teenage girls aged 15-20 with different cultural backgrounds

•  A survey of volume levels in children's and young people's environments.

•  Playgrounds at pre-schools and schools are inspected every month. Other municipal playgrounds twice a year.

•  All existing and new drains are fitted with special covers to stop people falling in.

Youth 16-24 years:

(se also age group 0-16 and schools)

•  A drug and crime prevention officer is employed to work with preventing drug problems.

•  Primary healthcare offers individual support to children and young people with psychological problems.

•  A drug issue advice centre for young people.

•  The youth centre, the work includes both individual and medical advice, examination and treatment and support in terms of psycho-social problems.

•  Inclusion of a subject called life skills in school.

Adults 25-64 years:

(se also traffic, home,other)

•  The Västra Skaraborg co-ordination society consists of four parts, The Swedish Social Insurance Agency, County Employment Board, Region Västra Götaland and the municipalities. Prioritised target groups are young adults aged 20-29 who require co-ordinated help.

•  Primary healthcare provides an individual service for preventing and treating psychological problems.

•  Primary healthcare provides a sleep school.

Elderly 65+ years:

(se also home and other)

•  The Senior Citizens Health work group organises theme days and trail events in the form of physical and/or social activities, lectures, musical events etc.

•  The exhibition ”Lev säkrare” (Live safer) The exhibition and accompanying folder and checklist presents practical articles and advice for preventing falls.

•  The senior citizens´ association started Active seniors. 150 senior citizens do weight training once a week.

•  A “safety bag” containing various safety items such as anti-skid devices, reflectors, ice studs etc. can be used when informing senior citizens and their relatives and when training care staff.

•  Physical and social activities such as dances, boule, social meetings, cafes, rambler groups and walking pole outings are arranged by the four senior citizens organisations, which are very active.

•  Senior citizens with a need of the “safe hip” hip protector, can buy them from Vård & Omsorg.

•  Meeting places for senior citizens are organised by the Red Cross and Vård & Omsorg

The activities are run with the help of volunteers.

•  The Red Cross friendship service visits senior citizens who experience loneliness and join them when visiting the doctor.

•  Volunteer centre.

•  Outdoor home help with cutting grass and clearing snow.

•  ”Fixarbrandis” provides practical assistance, carries out free safety rounds and puts up smoke detectors if there are none in the home.

•  Preventative home visits are offered to all senior citizens when they reach 75. Information is given about advice about preventative measures etc.

•  An information letter is sent from the Service and Grant Unit to all inhabitants when they reach 80. This letter informs them about Vård & Omsorg's activities and where to turn to if they need any kind of help. They are also offered home visits if they need them.

•  Fall prevention group work with fall prevention for inhabitants that the municipality has responsibility for providing healthcare for.

At the following environments :

Home :

•  For new builds and structural alterations, consideration is given to safety for children, senior citizens and disabled people.

•  The full-scale project built apartment models in full scale and then in consultation with various professions tried and tested the best solutions. The full-scale model will be used when necessary for future residential investments.

•  AB Bostäder, Lidköping`s municipal housing company, tries in everything it doses to think and act “safely and securely”.

Traffic :

•  The cycle path network in Lidköping town centre and its surrounding countryside is widespread. Cycle paths and some streets with a large cycle path are priority areas during the winter and are ploughed and sanded ahead of many roads.

•  The municipality will carry out a cycle path analysis in 2008 together with the Swedish Cycling association. The analyses will show areas needing attention, risks and needs for improvement of the current cycle path network.

•  A total review of the urban traffic speeds will be carried out in 2008 -2009 to better adapt to the needs of traffic safety and environmental targets.

•  The municipality was the fourth in the country to introduce a traffic safety review. The result will be a traffic strategy with a programme of measures developed as a basis for future budget investments for traffic and the municipality's future traffic safety initiatives.

•  The municipality, aims to employ an information officer to work with environmental and traffic safety information. An initiative is underway together with schools to get the “mobile school bus” project established at the various schools in order to cut the volume of traffic and risks outside schools.

•  Schools' school transport is planned with major demands on traffic safety.

•  Young drivers aged 18-24 are given the opportunity to take part in simulation exercises. The focus is on young people having the courage to take a stance and telling someone that they are driving too quickly, not using their seatbelt or intending to drive while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

School :

•  All new school students receive a yellow “Akta mig” (take care of me) baseball cap when they start school.

•  An overview and check of woodwork and metalwork workshops.

•  An overview and annual control of sports/gymnastics halls.

•  Registration of injuries and near accidents.

•  An equality plan to prevent bullying in pre-schools and schools.

•  All students in years 1-9 receive first aid and life-saving training.

•  The schools have cycle helmets that students can borrow when going on trips with he school

•  Student protection officers at year 7-9 schools take part in the working environment initiatives.

•  The Fastighetskontoret (property management offices) checks school playgrounds once a month and remedies any possible faults.

•  Life skills on the syllabus for years 1-9.

•  SMART DRAG, (smart move) drug prevention scheme is run by the student council in years 7-9 at the respective schools.

•  Schools prevent bullying and offensive discrimination.

Sports :

•  A number of sports associations work towards the goal of all active members in the association should be drug-free and work against bullying and racism, of which some have signed a policy document supporting work against drugs etc.

•  All activities for children and young people run in municipal properties and facilities must be drug free.

•  Sports federations offer regular training concerning safe transport in connection with practicing sports and concerning preventing sports injuries.

•  Training in HLR for sports associations.

•  Many associations have adopted a transport policy for safe transport in conjunction with their activities.

Other

•  An access guide is available on the Municipality of Lidköping 's website.

•  The Swedish Fire and rescue Service offers fire prevention training to trade and industry, associations, county council and the municipality.

•  The Swedish Fire and Rescue Service carries out regular reviews of fire prevention at hazardous facilities and premises where a large number of people might get injured.

•  Ofelia is Lidköping's local risk telephone, where inhabitants can report faults and damage risks in public areas.

•  Kultur & Fritid share the contribution with the aim of

•  Supporting associations to work with preventative measures concerning being drug-

•  Churches with their wide-ranging contact networks in society constantly work with preventative and acute measures for promoting public health. Examples are support

Violence prevention:

(se also age group 0-16, 16-24)

- Drug prevention work

•  A “Responsible restaurant” concept. To be designated as a “Responsible restaurant” requires the restaurant to meet a number of criteria.

•  Work to boost parents' and other adults' involvement in child and youth issues is ongoing.

•  The police provide crime prevention information to various associations and other activities.

•  There are 37 Neighbourhood Watch projects in Lidköping. The aim is to cut crime and boost security, which is achieved by the residents cooperating, supporting and helping one another.

Suicide prevention:

(se also age group 0-16, 16-24, 25-64 and over 65)

•  Drug prevention

•  Parental support. General and specific one-on-one parental support or in groups

•  Inclusion of a subject called life skills in school.

Surveillance of injuries :

•  Registration in hospital, local carecenters and dental carecenters

Numbers per year: about 3 400 (2007)

Population base: 38 000

Started year: Actual period started in 1998. Before that during the period 1983-1993.

•  Hospital discharge data

Publications :

•  Svanström L, Ekman R, Schelp L, Lindström Å (1995) The Lidköping accident prevention programme – a community approach to preventing childhood injuries in Sweden . Injury Prevention 1:169-172.
•  Ekman R. Injuries in Skaraborg County , Sweden (1996) Surveillance, analysis, and evaluation of community intervention at municipal and county level. Thesis. Karolinska Institutet, Department of Public Health Sciences, Division of Social Medicine, Sundbyberg, Sweden.
•  Svanström L, Ader M, Schelp L, Lindström Å. Preventing femoral fractures among elderly:
The community safety approach. Safety Sciences (1996) 21; 239-246. •  Ekman R, Schelp L, Welander G, Svanström L (1997) Can a combination of local, regional and national information substantially increase bicycle-helmet wearing and reduce injuries? Experiences from Sweden . Accident Analysis and Prevention 29;3:321-328.
•  Ekman R, Welander G (1998) The results of 10 years´ experience with the Skaraborg bicycle helmet programme in Sweden . International Journal for Consumer & Product Safety 5;1:23-39.
•  Ekman R, Welander G, Svanström L, Schelp L, Santesson P (2001) Bicycle-related injuries among the elderly. - A new epidemic? Public Health 115:38-43.
•  Ekman R, Welander G, Svanström L, Schelp L. 2001. Long-term effects of legislation and local promotion of child-restraint use in motor vehicles in Sweden . Accident Analysis and Prevention 33;793-797.
•  Svanström L, Welander G, Ekman R, Schelp L (2001) The Development of a Swedish National
Bicycle Safety Promotion Programme – One Decade of Experiences. Health Promotion International, Vol. 17;161-169.
•  Welander G, Svanström L, Ekman R. 2004. Safety Promotion. An Introduction. 2nd Revised Edition. Textbook. Karolinska Institutet, Dept. of Public Health Sciences, Div. of Social Medicine, Stockholm . Kristianstad Boktryckeri AB.
•  Welander G. (2001) Epidemiology and prevention of bicycle-related injuries in Sweden . Thesis. Karolinska Institutet, Department of Public Health Sciences, Division of Social Medicine, Stockholm , Sweden .
•  Fahl I, Ekman R, Schelp L. Skololyckor i Lidköpings kommun under tre läsår. Samhällsmedicinska enheten, Skaraborgs läns landsting. Mariestad 1989.
•  Jämlikare hälsa för barn till drogberoende föräldrar – utvärdering av ett folkhälsoprojekt i sex kommuner i Västra Götaland. Agneta Krantz. Forskningsstation Mösseberg 2001
•  Ditt barn, vårt solidariska samhällsansvar. En utvärdering av projektet Jämlikare hälsa för barn till drogberoende föräldrar. Janet Wohlfarth, Agneta Sandström. 2004:G
•  Ader M. Lidköping. Ett säkert och tryggt boende för de äldre. Lidköpings kommun, Landstinget Skaraborg. Lidköping 1992.
•  Nilsen P, Ekman R , Stark Ekman D, Ryen L and Lindqvist K. Effectiveness of community-based injury prevention: Long-term injury rate levels, changes, and trends for 14 Swedish WHO-designated Safe Communities, Accident Analysis & Prevention, 2007;39(2);267-273.
•  Ponce de Leon A, Svanström L, Welander G, Schelp L, Santesson P & Ekman R. Differences in child injury hospitalizations in Sweden -the use of time-trend analysis to compare various community injury prevention approaches. Scand J Public Health, 2007;35(6):623-630.
•  Ader M. Skadeboken Att registrera skador-en väg till bättre folkhälsa. Metod och erfarenheter. 2007.
•  Robert Ekman, Lars Berg, Stig Svensson (2008). Att registrera personskador. Socialstyrelsen & Räddningsverket, NCO 2007:1

Produced information material, pamphlets :

•  Lidköping vid Vänern. 10 år som En säker och trygg kommun. Lidköpings kommun, Västra Götalandsregionen.

•  Skador registrerade i Skaraborgsområdet i Västra Götalandsregionen år 2006. Västra Götalandsrgionen, Folkhälsokommittén.

•  Lidköpings äldresäkerhetsarbete & dess utvecklingsmöjligheter – En sammanfattning. Lidköpings kommun,

•  Möjligheter för ungdomar. Kultur & Fritid 2008.

•  Lev säkrare. En säker och trygg kommun. Folkhälsorådet och Arbetsgruppen Seniorers hälsa.

•  Utställning med säkerhetsartiklar för äldre

•  Väska med säkerhetsartiklar för barn

•  Dokumentation av ”Lidköping-En spjutspets till nollvisionen”

•  Lidköping En säker och trygg kommun 20 år

Organization :

Lidköping has a public health council together with a crime prevention council comprising the two municipal commissioners, board chairmen and two directly elected individuals from the Healthcare Committee in Västra Skaraborg. The chairman is the municipal executive committee´s chairman.

The drafting committee is the municipality's management group with the addition of the head of the rescue services, leading representatives from Primary Healthcare, Dental Health Service, Hospitals, Social Insurance Office, Employment Services, Police and representatives from the Adult Education Council and from Lidköping's Christian Cooperation Council. Cross-sectional working groups work on the health issues of various target groups such as children and senior citizens and with Safe Communities, traffic safety, put Lidköping in motion, drug and crime prevention and mental health. Working groups also include representatives from trade and industry.

An employed public health coordinator is responsible for the coordination of the preventive work.

International commitments:

Study visits : Yes

Participation in Safe Community conferences:

1991 Falköping, Sweden
1993 Glasgow, Scotland
1994 Harstad, Norway
1995 Forth Mc Murray, Canada
1998 Rotterdam, Netherlands
1999 Reykjavik, Iceland
2000 Nacka, Sweden
2003 Helsingfors, Finland
2008 Borås, Sweden

Hosting Safe Community Conferences:

1999 "A safe, secure community", in connection with the national conference this year.

Hosting ”Travelling Seminars”:

1989, 1991, 1994 and 2002