The programme covers the following safety promotion activities:

For the age group

Children and young people 0-25 years:
The goal is that their safety shall be the point of departure for the prevention work in all fields where children and young people are concerned.

Measures taken:
The Helmet 5th - to promote the use of helmets and improve cycle safety, every year in the 5th form Information about the prevention of accidents and injuries directly to immigrant families Days devoted to this particular theme at school Child safety bag at the child welfare centres Inspection of lids on wells Rounds for protection and safety in different environments within child care, schools and public playgrounds Check of the proficiency in swimming among children Exhibitions in the schools Registration of injuries in the schools The frequency of injuries in sports education. Conference Young Now -99.

Measures planned
Heart-lung rescue in forms 1-9 To start the Zero Club for children 0-16 years Safety education for the 5th form Further development of the registration of injuries at school Education of the child welfare staff

The long-term programme of the Public Health Council states that children and young people are to be given priority and in this field we make specific efforts to prevent the abuce of drugs, for instance:

Dare to See - Dare to Care, education of parents in form 6 Roots and Wings, education of parents in form 7 Life style discussions with pupils in form 6

Adults 25-64 years:
Please see below, Occupational and Traffic

Elderly 65+ years:
The goal is to reduce the medical, social and mental consequences of injuries and insecurity. Old people must feel safe in their home community.

Measures taken:
Education and information to pensionners' associations and the like on accidents among old people Exhibitions Reports on and measures against fall incidents To visit old people in their homes Information and education on osteoporosity

Measures planned:
Education of staff for the care of old people Production of an information-board about the safety of old people The use of cycle helmets among old people Development of the reporting of injuries in old-age housing Days for information on old people's safety

At the following environments:

Home:
Please see above "Children and elderly"

Traffic:
The work for road safety is carried out via LOTS, a local institution for road safety, comprising, among others, many of the voluntary organizations of the municipality, such as the Cruisin' Club, the Red Cross, the Association of Tenants, MHF (Drivers' Association for Teetotallers), the Home and School Association of Leksberg, the pensionners' organizations. Its work has been strongly directed towards the creation of a road safety programme and the increase of safety for unprotected road users.

Measures taken:
The drawing up of a local plan for road safety Activities concerning cycle helmets, aimed above all at children and employees in the enterprises of the community "The Bike Cycle", bicycle safety and the use of helmets, in co-operation with Agenda 21, the inter-company sports and athletics and the Swedish Society for the preservation of natural amenities Information in connection with days for road safety Check-up of speed and the use of safety-belts Inquiry in forms 2, 5 and 8 to find out how the pupils experience the traffic situation

Measures planned:
Days for road safety Measures based on how the pupils experience the traffic situation To stimulate the road users to follow given rules

Occupational:
To bring down the number of injuries and support efforts to counteract psycho-social ill-health in the places of work.

Measures taken:
Check of the work for safety in the different places of work Increased collaboration between different ploaces of work concerning accident statistics Safe roads to and from work Increased use of cycle helmets

Measures planned:
A programme for preventive activities To evaluate injuries within a few areas Deeper analysis of what is going on in different industries

School:
Please see above "children and youth"

Sports and leisure:
The registration of injuries shows team sports, such as football, to be exposed. Accidents also occur in school sports.

Measures taken:
Analysis of injury statistics Safety rounds in establishments for sports and spare time activities Information via mass media

Measures planned:
Information and education for sportsmen, sports leaders, teachers and parents To offer associations training to administer first aid and heart-lung rescue To prepare accident kits

Safety at sea and on ice
The situation of Mariestad on lake Vänern and its nearness to other lakes and streams give rise to numerous activities on water and ice.

Measures taken:
Information to clubs and associations on changes in nautical charts, on near-accidents and on proposals to promote safety Reports on dangerous areas and near-accidents at sea Check of the proficiency in swimming among pupils in forms 3 and 5 Inspection of public landing-stages Information via mass media on safety on ice Information to the public in connection with other activities in the municipality, such as the Harbour Festival Life-jackets for hire

Measures planned:
The teaching of swimming to specific groups, such as immigrants and old people Instruction to different associations on safety at sea and on ice Information on safety at sea and on ice to nursery-schools Information on safety at sea and on ice to pupils engaged in practical occupational experience (PRAO).

Violence prevention:
As from 1998 the Public Health Council is also a council for the prevention of crime. In 1998 a measurement of safety was carried out in Skaraborg. It shows that many individuals experience insecurity in Mariestad. It is, therefore, an important task to work actively against violence and crime within all fields and to make good use of initiatives from citizens, organ-izations and so on. The working group has been commissioned to map out the development of violence and crime in the municipality and to use their findings to draw up a programme for action.

Measures taken:
To map and visualize the development of violence and crime in the community To describe the problems To draw up a programme of action The project Way Out, to support women and men who have suffered or practised violence in their family Women's/Men's emergency shelters Mediation between victim and criminal Co-operation between neighbours

Measures planned:
Exhibitions and talks on violence and crime To carry through the measures given priority in the plan of action

Suicide prevention:
Not yet

Programs aiming at "High risk-groups":
The injury prevention programme of Mariestad includes several high-risk groups, among others children and young people, old people and immigrants, and high-risk environments such as homes, traffic, sports establishments and places of work.

Our ambition is to create safe environments for children and young people to live in, by means of safety rounds to playgrounds, inspections of lids on wells, the Helmet 5th, days devoted to this particular theme at school. Education on children's and young people's school environment is meant to make the preventive work form a whole.

Many accidents among children occur at home and so parents are an important target group for instruction. Parents of immigrant children have received specific information, since statistics show that these children are particularly exposed.

Statistics also show that injuries registered at nursing centres and emergency reception centres are often connected to sports. Therefore, work to prevent such injuries is very important.
Old people are offered a visit in their home, when they reach the age of 75, and are then informed on accident risks. Meetings for information to old people have also been organized.

Surveillance of injuries:

The foundation of all injury preventive work is a careful registration of injuries, to give a more complete picture of to what extent the inhabitants utilize the care caused by injuries and accidents.

Since 1998 an extended injury registration takes place in Skaraborg, as a collaboration between the medical services of the county, the municipalities and the public health centres, which will result in better knowledge of the frequency and causes of injuries.

Schools in Mariestad have begun to report accidents and near-accidents to the school nurse, who makes up the statistics.

Fall accidents and near-accidents in the public homes for aged people are registered for statistics.

The local police report all road accidents in the community.

Drowning-accidents and other accidents at sea are reported.

Numbers per year: 2845 (care centres, dental clinics and hospital 1998)
Population base: 24 000
Started year: 1998

Publications: Inspection of lids on wells1993, Tekniska kontoret Mariestad

Produced information material, pamphlets: -

International commitments: -

Study visits:
Reykjavik Iceland 1999

Participation in Safe Community conferences:
The 3rd Nordic Safe Community Conference, Reykjavik Iceland 1999.

Hosting Safe Community Conferences:
Not yet

Hosting "Travelling Seminars":

In connection with visits from Pakruojis, our adopted town in Lithuania, we have introduced our injury preventive programme. This work is to be continued by way of visits to Pakruojis to map their needs of help in this field. In the first place safety education for form 5 a travelling seminar for the Baltic countries, may 2000.

Staff
Photo of leader(s): Number: 1
Professions: Who have the general responsibility for the public health work in Mariestad
Permanent: Karin Skagelin, Public Health

Temporary:
The leaders of the specific safety prevention groups
Clas-Göran Crommert, Directing group, Environment and health protection
Sirkka Gilbertsson, Prevention of violence and crime/Public Health
Birgitta Stenemar, Safety of old people
Eisabeth Holgersson, Safety of children and young people
Christina Djäken, Safety of children and young people
Eva Berdenius, Traffic safety
Göran Friman, Safety at sea and on ice
Rune Hermansson, Safe working places
Ann-Chrestine Gustavsson, Safety in sports and exercise

Organization:
For the injury prevention work, which is one of the priority fields in the local public health work of Mariestad, we have today a well-developed organization. The directing group, at the head of several reference and working groups, is directly subordinated to the local Public Health Council.
To reach good results in the injury prevention work it is necessary to create wide involvement and to anchor the work on all social levels.

The network for the preventive work is made up of local authorities, the County Council, the police, educational associations, voluntary organiza-tions, associations, village communities, the local press and representatives of the trade and industry. These are all important collaborators in the creation of "A Safe Community".

In the different working groups different local activities are represented.

Specific intersectoral leadership group:

There is one representative of each working group in the directing group. Its task is to co-ordinate the work and:

• To support the work of the working groups
• To follow up the injury statistics
• To give continuous information to the local Public Health Council
• To collaborate with local media to spread information on the work to prevent injuries
• To present material for information and exhibitions
• To keep informed about national and international injury prevention work.

General public health/health promotion group:
To create possibilities for local work for public health in Mariestad we have, since the autumn of 1996, a politically formed Public Health Council, which, from 1998, also serves as a council for the prevention of crime. It is made up of representatives of the local authorities and of the county council plus three civil servants. Its work is based on the knowledge of the health situation among the inhabitants and is carried on as a long-time business including all the social sectors.

Under the Public Health Council there is a managing group that comprises representatives of municipality and county council on the management level and for the labour exchange, the social insurance service and the police. Its task is to see to it that the public health of the town is elucidated in the processes of planning as well as of decision within the fields of responsibility of all the committees and authorities. The managing group shall create possibilities for the realization of public health activities.

For further information contact:
Clas-Göran Crommert
Miljökontoret
Esplanaden 5
S-542 41 Mariestad
Sweden
Phone: +46 (0)501 63431 Fax: +46 (0)501 63389
E-mail: miljo@mariestad.se
Info address on www for the institution: www.mariestad.se