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Name of the Community: Vorarlberg
Country: Austria
Number of inhabitants: 367.800
Year Programme started: 1997
International Safe Communities Network Membership: Designation year : 2002
Info address for the Programme on the WWW: http://www.sicheregemeinden.at
Annual report: 2009
For further information contact:
Ing. Franz Rein
Initiative Sichere Gemeinden
Realschulstr. 6
AT- 6850 Dornbirn
Austria
Phone : +43 5572 54343-0 Fax: +43 5572 54343-45
 sige@sicheregemeinden.at johannes.peterlunger@sicheregemeinden.at
Info addresses for the institution on the WWW (community as a whole):
http://www.sicheregemeinden.at (http://www.vorarlberg.at)
The Programme covers the following safety promotion activities:
For the age group
Children (0-14 years):
Example: Lectures and talks at the maternity ward of the Provincial Hospital,
responsibilities for maternity centres, packets of safety products from the community as
presents for mothers at the birth of a child, a kindergarten festival of learning about
biking and the use of helmets, "accident-prevention clown", various road safety
education
programmes, a series of school projects (topics such as "Blind Spots/Fatal
Spots",
"Seeing and Being Seen"), education and training of qualified instructors
(midwives, kindergarten teachers, mother and child welfare advisers).
Youth (15-24 years):
Inline skating courses, Freeride-Safety-Camp for snowboarders, courses for mountain
bikers
Adults (25-64 years):
Courses for open-country touring skiiers, forestry safety, amateur football tournements
with fairness scorings, do-it-yourself courses for home Christmas decorations, safe-
driving courses for motorcyclists, special medical care for amateur sportspersons, fire
protection with training in fire-extinguishing techniques, "Seeing and Being
Seen".
Elderly (65+ years):
Senior citizens and everyday living, "Seeing and Being Seen", osteoporosis -
prevention
Through exercise, nutrition and medical care, training and education of qualified
instructors and care personnel (nursingstaff)
In the following environments:
Home:
Senior Citizens and Everyday Living:
Accident prevention in senior citizens' households contains enormous potential for
avoiding human suffering and for saving economic resources. Especially useful and
interesting impulses have been offered through the cooperative efforts of Hermann Mayer at
the Institute for Social Services, Rehabilitation Services and the institution Practical
Building for a Better Living Environment. The relevance of this topic is emphasized again
and again by the positive reactions to the lectures, such as "I've experienced that
all personally!" or "I've also had problems with the simplest of household
articles!" The risk groups were addressed directly, on three levels.
In senior citizens' discussion groups and yearly meetings project managers have the
opportunity to point out, in their lectures, many common, everyday household hazards.
Overhead projections, slides and other AV aids have proven to be quite helpful in this
respect.
Afternoon information sessions and events entitled "Osteoporosis - Is Prevention the
Only Cure?" have received wide-spread recognition and acclaim, especially due to the
quite varied and eventful nature of the programme.
Thiemo Dalpra, the "Senior Citizen Clown" and the senior citizens' stand with
its stairs-exhibit additionally called attention amongst the broader public to the
necessity for designing living spaces with safety features in mind.
Traffic:
Seeing and Being Seen:
Great interest was shown on the part of schools and parents-teachers associations of
Vorarlberg for the project "Seeing and Being Seen". In addition to the persons
in charge from the "Initiative Safe Communities", representatives from the two
major Austrian automobile clubs were also present and supplemented some of the individual
events.
For example, children, parents and teachers were able to get into a bus and themselves
experience how difficult it sometimes is for drivers to see other road users at night. The
risk for a biker or pedestrian of being involved in an accident during the night is three
times higher than during the day. Special dangers lurk for the so-called "weaker road
users" (bikers and pedestrians) during periods of rain or fog. Using a practical
trial method, the visitors can form their own picture and ideas about how important proper
clothing can be for personal safety.
The entirely positive responses of the organizers make it clear that the this type of
event forms a valuable supplement to road safety education.
Occupational: Apprentice Training:
An "average accident" costs about 3,800 Euros, with the employer bearing about
21% of these costs. And it should be noted that the indirect costs (for example for worker
replacements, overtime hours of the other employees, delayed delivery times, reduced
productivity, etc.) are not contained in this calculation. Having realized this situation,
the Hilti Company in Thüringen, in cooperation with the Initiative Safe Communities and
others, offered a course for their apprentices on the topic "Conduct On and Beyond
Prepared Skiing Slopes".
On 17 December 1999 the mountain guide Gerold Dünser paid a visit to the participating
group in the educational course rooms at the Hilti Company, where he presented this topic
to the young people in a short slide show. A few days later they continued their learning
experience out in the countryside. The central themes of this "hands-on" day
included the importance of proper equipment, weather knowledge and judging snow
properties, correct conduct on and off the prepared skiing slopes, as well as dealing with
an avalanche victim search device.
"Snowboarding can be learned comparatively quickly, and in deep snow it is quite a
bit easier than skiing. For this reason it is very important to focus the attention of
this group of winter sportspersons on imminent dangers," reasoned Gerold Dünser.
Since over 90% of the young people attending the practical outdoor course had snowboards,
the basic premises of this project were again confirmed.
Course Modules for Companies:
More and more company owners realize that absenteeism due to illness and accidents causes enormous costs. Avoiding leisure time and sports accidents presents an extremely
significant savings
potential for companies. In this connection the Safe Communities project offers interested
company
owners and staff its help and support in the implementation of the various procedures and
events
designed to improve the safety awareness of the company employees.
School: Blind Spot - Fatal Spot:
A lorry pulls up at the stop line of a street crossing. At the same moment a bike rider
rides up close to the vehicle on the right-hand side. The truck driver cannot see the
biker, in spite of the rearview mirror located at the front righthand corner of his
vehicle. Users of two-wheel vehicles are in extreme danger in such situations. For them
the "blind spot" in the angle of view of the truck driver can quickly become a
"fatal spot".
To avoid such dangerous situations, and to heighten the awareness of the public at large,
the Initiative Safe Communities, in cooperation with the Road Safety Education Authorities
of the Provincial Superintendant of Schools in Vorarlberg and the Austrian Automobile
Club, has inititiated the free programme "Brummi" (="Lorry"). Pupils,
parents and teachers taking part in this programme can experience first hand and from the
angle of view or rather "angle of blindness" of the truck driver, just how
dangerous "blind spots" can be. As a pupil on his bike stops close up on the
right-hand side of the lorry, the other participants can observe - from the viewpoint or
angle of the vehicle's driver - just how this biker "disappears" from view in
the "blind spot".
In the spring of 2000 the project "TRIXI Blind Spot - Fatal Spot" was offered
for the first time to all primary schools, middle schools and high schools in Vorarlberg.
The registrations for participation in this event exceded all our expectations. It was
quite clear that truck drivers as well as transportation and construction firms were very
interested in this topic, as they gladly supported us with the free use of their vehicles.
Safer Snow - More Fun:
In the context of the campaign "SAFER SNOW" a project competition called Safer
Snow - More Fun" has been offered. All the classes of all Vorarlberg schools are
invited to participate and, in their creative, entirely individual and original manner
(for example with drawings, poems, songs, theater plays, collages, video clips) contribute
information and impulses on accident prevention for skiers and snowboarders. Ski clubs and
associations also have the opportunity to take part in the competition project. Every year
contributions of the most varied types and designs, carried out by school classes and ski
clubs, arrive at the offices of Safe Communities. In a final exhibition in the foyer of
the Provincial Government Building in Bregenz the participating pupils and clubs present
their work at a festive occasion and use this opportunity to make a "live
appearance" (theater, rap, songs on safety, etc.).
Sports:
Fairness - Scoring at the Amateur Soccer Tournament:
From the vantage point of accident prevention sports are definitely worthy activities and
leisure time occupations. Those persons who keep fit are better prepared for avoiding or
coping with accidental falls than those who rarely or never do sports. The integration of
fairness scorings into football competitions offers an additional opportunity to reduce
the risk of injury to a minimum during the sports activities and to emphasize fair
behaviour towards the other team as an integral aspect of the values behind every game.
With Paul Hehle (Ski Club Eichenberg) in charge, the fairness ethic will be introduced
into all aspects of the entire championship event. In the amateur championships Lowerland
the teams of pupils and boys will also be competing for first place in the fairness
scorings during the whole season. Using a sophisticated system, the referees as well as
the trainers will be involved in judging and evaluating the behaviour of the young kickers
in each of the championship matches. Two other leagues have also joined this competition
in the implementation of the fairplay evaluations.
Inline Skating Course:
The inline skating boom is continuing unabated. Whether pursued as leisure time exercise
or merely as a means of movement, inline skating is enjoying immense popularity. Skating
is recognized for its valuable role in training the heart and circulatory system, while at
the same time - in comparison to other summer sports - presenting a minimum of strain on
the joints.
Skating, rounding curves and braking techniques, as well as learning how to fall properly
- all of these facets must be learned to prevent the travel on 8 wheels from becoming an
accident hazard. It is also absolutely necessary to know all about the present legal
situation (road laws, rules and regulations) related to inline skating, and it is just as
important to make the right selection of equipment and care for its maintenance. Should a
fall or a crash happen, wearing the right protective equipment can mean avoiding serious
injuries.
In cooperation with the inline skating clubs of the Province of Vorarlberg (the Inline
Skaters Oberland in Feldkirch (Chairman Werner Ladurner), and the Skater Club Bürs
(Chairpersons Wolfgang Töchterle) and Silvia Fässler numerous courses on these topics,
from beginner to advanced level, are offered every year.
Leisure: Safe Forestry Practices:
In this course a professional forester shows - after a short
theoretical introduction by another expert, and using practical examples - the most
important aspects of felling trees, sawing and working on wood. During the presentation
the participants in the course can, at the information stands, gather information and ask
questions about the servicing and care of machines and equipment, as well as about
personal protective gear. One of the highpoints of this event is certainly the
demonstration of the effectiveness of cut-prevention protective trousers, as shown by an
attempted cut in the leg region. In a follow-up quiz interesting prizes can be won. Thanks
to the positive echo about these courses the course offerings will be intensified and
expanded by training more instructors.
Mountainbike Course:
The mountain bike as sports equipment has experienced a tremendous boom in popularity.
However, proper use and control of this fascinating "vehicle" is not so
straightforward as it might seem at first sight, especially when the biker is riding
around on forestry roads and steep slopes. In order to become better acquainted with the
mountain bike as sports gear, and to gather practical tips from professional bikers,
courses have been initiated by the Initiative Safe Communities, in cooperation with
Sportinformation Vorarlberg.
After a thorough theoretical introduction, and with a specially trained biking instructor,
between 10 to 15 course participants set out into the open countryside on their bikes. In
the course of this tour they learn how to properly adjust the wheels, as well as how to
apply various turning, curving and braking techniques. In addition, they learn about
proper nutrition habits, training procedures and, of course, about the necessary biking
gear.
Other: Training of Additional Instructors:
For example, advisers and lecturers for first aid courses, senior citizens, midwives,
parent-teacher associations, kindergarten teachers, child care institutions and personnel,
teachers, nursing staff, mobile emergency services, football trainers, persons responsible
for planning sports facilities (skater grounds in our community).
Where to find further information:
Violence prevention: cf. www.vorarlberg.at
Suicide prevention: cf. www.vorarlberg.at
Programmes aiming at "high risk groups": cf. www.vorarlberg.at
Overview of injuries:
Household survey conducted by the Safe Living Institute
Numbers per year: 2000: approx. 10,000 respondents with approx. 700 injuries
Population base: approx. 65,000
Started year:
1993-1996 every year, then again in 2000
Publications:
1. "Safe Communities" in Vorarlberg - a Model for Austria;
Bob Goethals and Rupert Kisser, 2000
2. What does "Safe Communities" offer? Evaluation Vorarlberg, 2000;
Gerald Furian and Franz Rein, 2001
Information material, pamphlets produced:
Folder:
· Senior Citizens and Accidental Falls - Avoidable with More Safety Awareness
· Safety in the Saddle (Horses)
· More Safety, Fewer Accidents (Safe Communities in general)
Broschure:
· Tips on Child Safety
· Safer Inline Skating, with Course Certificate
Posters:
· Blind Spot
· Hiking
· Football
· Safe Forestry Practices
· Inline Skating
· SNOW SAFE (Winter Sports)
· Safety in the Saddle (Horses)
Flyer:
Reflector Products
15 different information flyers: Tips for the Safe Senior Citizen's Household
Idea Bourses
Other:
Annual Project Documentation
Stickers (Teddybear)
Help in Emergencies (Emergency phone number card for children)
Passport for the Bike-Helmet Games/Festival
Staff
Number: 4
 
Angela Bösch ------Mag. Johannes Peterlunger
Andrea Hasberger
Professionals: Part-time or full-time: 3 full-time, 1 part-time Permanent: All
Organization: Initiative Safe Communities (independent funds)
Specific intersectoral leadership group: Institut Sicher Leben (Institute Safe Living)
General public health/health promotion group: Institut Sicher Leben (Institute Safe Living)
International Commitments:
Study visits: Stockholm 4/1999
Participation in Safe Community conferences: Rotterdam 5/1998, Vienna 10/1999
Hosting ”Travelling Seminars”: 2002
Updated by Moa
Sundström, 2002-10-29 14:39.
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