Conducción de vehículos y estado de salud: el dificil equilibrio entre valoración de aptitudes, prevención del riesgo y calidad de vida. Un compromiso para los centros de reconocimiento de conductores

Injuries associated with road crashes are one of the main causes of morbidity and mortality in our country. The causes are varied and involve the person driving, the vehicle and other external factors such as public roads and legislation. However most important injuries can be prevented. A useful tool for this purpose is the Psychological Medical Examination Protocol for Drivers’ Health Assessment Centers, which has been updated by a working group coordinated by the General Directorate of Traffic and the General Directorate of Public Health with the participation of experts from the Spanish Society of Traffic Medicine and the collaboration of institutions related to road risk assessment. The new version of the protocol highlights both the assessment of road risk associated with health conditions, and as a novelty, the importance of road safety professional’s advice to inform and train citizens on how to prevent risks based on their health situation or health condition. It highlights the need for the Drivers’ Health Assessment Centers intervention to focus on prevention, being necessary to accompany psychophysical assessment with road safety advice that allows the driver to be aware of the road safety benefits of the prescribed measures. The objective of this article was to make known not only the psychological medical examination protocol, but also the approach that is given to the preventive intervention of road accidents from the health field.