Scholarship Essay Entry – Helen C.

Five years ago my mother was involved in a rear-end collision while stopped at a red light. The other driver was distracted and unable to brake in time. As a result, my mother now is permanently debilitated in her everyday life and medically unable to work.

Injury from motor vehicle collisions remains the number one killer of youths aged 15 to 20 in Alberta, and for the past 15 years, research has shown that cellphone use while driving is deadly: it increases your risk of collision by four- to six-fold. Effects include slowed reaction time by 18%, while texting slows this by 35%. When compared to driving at the legal limit of alcohol, which slows reaction time by 12%, it may be said that cellphone use while driving is even more dangerous than driving drunk. And surprisingly, research has also shown that using hands-free devices is equally as risky, which makes one wonder how effective legislation banning cellphones but allowing Bluetooth devices can be.

Yet despite all the facts and figures I could quote regarding this topic, you still see people behind the wheel talking on their cells or texting during all hours of the day. In this technologically advanced age, where elementary and junior high kids have their own iPhones and Blackberrys, it's a cultural norm to use your phone when you're on-the-go.

As co-leader of the University of Alberta's Students for Cellphone-Free Driving (SCFD) group, my hope is to help change this social attitude, particularly in those who are just beginning to drive. Since the summer of 2009, SCFD volunteers have presented to over 3000 students in high school CALM classes and during conferences, on the dangers of cellphone use while driving. From the questionnaires that we ask our audiences to fill out, the majority of those who responded said they would pass on what they learned to family and friends, which exponentially increases the number of people impacted. Currently we are working with other Western Canada universities to start new chapters and help spread the word.

After a year of medical school at the University of Alberta, I have learned how incredibly important injury prevention is. To avoid a crisis rather than try and develop better ways to deal with it afterward - I truly believe this strategy is the most effective in terms of human lives saved, and SCFD is one such avenue in which I am able to promote this message in the community. As someone whose family has closely experienced the hardships and suffering after a motor vehicle collision, I hope that through my efforts with SCFD, I am contributing to creating safer roads for all.