WHO: 3,300 killed daily in Western Pacific

The World Health Organization (WHO) said yesterday it was alarmed by figures showing that over 3,300 people in the Western Pacific region die daily of road traffic accidents, suicide, drowning and other injury-related deaths.

In a statement, the WHO said an estimated five million people die from injury-related deaths each year worldwide, including 1.2 million annually in the Western Pacific region — or a total of nearly 3,300 deaths annually.

The Western Pacific covers 48 countries and territories including Australia, the Pacific island countries, Japan, Korea, India, Bangladesh and the Philippines.

According to WHO estimates, over 90 percent of injuries occur in low- and medium-income countries and territories and particularly affect the young and productive age groups.

The WHO said major injury-related cases of deaths in the region are suicide, which claims 343,000 lives yearly; road traffic accidents, which kill 302,000; and drowning, with 171,000 deaths.

The WHO also said in its statement that it was "alarmed by the magnitude of the problem."

It warned that road traffic injuries and suicides could rank among the top 15 causes of deaths worldwide by 2020.

"A business-as-usual approach is no longer acceptable," WHO Western Pacific regional director Dr. Shigeru Omi said. "We, as public health professionals, need to address the causes of injuries and injury-related deaths in partnership with other sectors and stakeholders."

The WHO opened a meeting of national experts in Manila on Monday to discuss future directions for injury and violence prevention programs.

Omi underscored the need to raise public awareness and appealed to political leaders for the resources needed to address the problem.

"We must build our institutional capacity and human resources to meet the challenges of injury and violence prevention," Omi said. — Sheila Crisostomo, AP