Release Date: November 12, 2004
Media Contact: James Duggleby
E-mail: james.duggleby@uregina.ca
Phone: (306) 585-5439
Mobile: (306) 536-4312
Fax: (306) 585-4997
Safety of older drivers can be improved
Drivers’ perceptions, beliefs and openness to change may be a part of the recipe for improving safe driving about older drivers.

Thats one of the messages that Holly Tuokko, Ph.D., University of Victoria, will deliver in a public lecture Nov. 18, 3:30-4:30 p.m. at the Language Institute Auditorium on the University of Regina campus.

Tuokko’s lecture, titled "Perceptions, Beliefs and Behaviours of Older Drivers,” is this year’s Distinguished Lecture, presented by the University’s Centre on Aging and Health and co-sponsored by Saskatchewan Government Insurance (SGI).

Tuokko believes that with a rapidly aging population, strategies for improving driver safety are emerging that focus on changing driving behaviours and knowledge.

“Our findings suggest that educational materials for older drivers may need to be targeted differently for men and women,” Tuokko says. “In addition, driving may serve as a strong motivator for older adults to engage in physical and educational activities that enhance their mobility.”

Tuokko is a world-renowned gerontology scholar and has conducted extensive research on driving among seniors and the early detection of dementia. She is a professor in the Department of Psychology and the Centre on Aging at the University of Victoria and has been awarded Senior Investigator status through the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Institute of Aging.

This is the second annual Distinguished Lecture hosted by the Centre on Aging and Health. The Centre was established in January 2003 to conduct research, enhance graduate education, and disseminate information on aging and health issues. For further information or to reserve a seat, please contact the Centre at 337-2537.