OLDER DRIVER AND MENTAL ILLNESS
This paper outlines the regulations regarding fitness to drive for mentally ill, older adults in the UK. In July 1995, roughly 1.6 million UK residents aged 70 and older were licensed to drive. Drivers over the age of 65 are at greater risk of accidents than middle-aged drivers and are more likely to die as a result of an accident. In the UK, Group 1 licenses--ordinary driving licenses for cars, trucks, etc--are held continuously up to the age of 70 and then renewed every 3 years. Current laws in the UK concerning the licensing of drivers following an episode of mental illness have recently been brought into line with the rest of Europe. After a mental illness requiring hospitalization, the driver stops driving for 6 months; license holders with dementia may continue to drive provided judgment and insight are retained and the patient is not disoriented; and those with alcohol dependency have a required 1-year interval from dependency before the license is restored. Psychiatrists need to advise patients about the consequences that their diagnosis has on their driving, and patients have the responsibility of informing the licensing authority of any diagnosis that may affect their driving ability.
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Availability:
- Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/08856230
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Corporate Authors:
Wiley (John) & Sons, Limited
Baffins Lane
Chichester, Sussex England -
Authors:
- Warner, J P
- Publication Date: 1996-10
Language
- English
Media Info
- Features: References;
- Pagination: p. 859-862
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Serial:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry
- Volume: 11
- Issue Number: 10
- Publisher: Wiley (John) & Sons, Limited
- ISSN: 0885-6230
- Serial URL: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10991166
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Abilities; Aged; Aged drivers; Alcohol abuse; Automobile driving; Crash risk forecasting; Driver licensing; Fatalities; Fitness to drive; Mental illness; Regulations; Traffic safety
- Geographic Terms: United Kingdom
- Subject Areas: Highways; Law; Safety and Human Factors; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 00792531
- Record Type: Publication
- Files: TRIS
- Created Date: May 3 2000 12:00AM