Elder Drivers

Have you ever encountered an unsafe driver on the road and realized it was an elderly person? I cannot help but feel a mixture of frustration and sadness when witnessing them drive in a terrible manner. It is understandable to be frustrated and worrisome of unsafe drivers on the road when one is trying their best to be safe. Where I grew up, in St. Pete Beach, it was quite common to encounter many of these unsafe, elderly drivers on a daily basis. Many elderly people move there when they retire. The majority of these elderly drivers proceeded to almost cause accidents even while driving under the speed limit. It is scary to think that the leading cause of accidental death of elders, whose ages range from 65 to 74, are from motor vehicles.

Something should be done. Florida definitely needs to adopt mandatory testing of drivers 65 and older. In my initial blog, I talked about my family's friend, Tom, who is over 80 years old. His daughters have begged him not to drive anymore, but he refuses to listen because he likes his independence. It took him about 6 tries to pass a driver's test after recovering from a stroke. I am sure he does not realize that motor vehicles are the second leading cause of accidental death for those over 75 years!

After witnessing and encountering unsafe elderly drivers, I realize how important and dangerous this issue is. It is not only dangerous to innocent safe drivers on the road, but dangerous to the unsafe, elderly drivers. After reading certain chapters in Health in the Later Years, 4^th Edition (Ferrini, A. & Ferrini R. 2008), I understand that as we all get older, we tend to develop problems with hearing, sight, and motor skills. This should be even more of a reason to implement some sort of test to determine if those 65 and older are capable of driving safely for the sake of themselves and others. I understand that there are many elderly people who still want their freedom of driving, but feel that if they are not able to be safe enough drivers then they should not be driving at all.