Implications

Factors contributing to injuries among First Nations children include: low rates of seatbelt usage; increased use of alternative modes of motorized transportation such as snowmobiles and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs); the remoteness of many Indigenous communities, which means traveling greater distances on poor quality or icy roads as well as limited access to emergency rescue or medical assistance; and increased access to bodies of water for recreation, transportation and food. This is also coupled with lower usage of flotation devices, high rates of smoking, reliance on wood heat, poor housing conditions, and lack of smoke detectors, as well as poverty and poor quality/overcrowded housing conditions. Injury prevention in Indigenous communities must take into account the socio-economic realities in which Indigenous people live, in conjunction with an individual’s own personal resources.