In recent weeks, I’ve been getting reorganized to resume doing more writing and posting on this blog, in Roundel, and other places. There are three subjects I’ve been interested in pursuing for a long time, but I need your help. 1. How to Drive Safely Around Emergency Vehicles: This has been requested by several readers. […]
In recent weeks, I’ve been getting reorganized to resume doing more writing and posting on this blog, in Roundel, and other places. There are three subjects I’ve been interested in pursuing for a long time, but I need your help.
1. How to Drive Safely Around Emergency Vehicles: This has been requested by several readers. While there is plenty of basic, common-sense info out there about moving over for and slowing down around police vehicles, ambulances, and fire trucks, I’m looking to dig deeper into this topic. I’m especially interested in hearing from those of you who work in law enforcement and as EMTs about what dangerous situations you’ve encountered with other motorists when you’re trying to attend to a crash scene or other emergency, what caused them, and what you recommend that people do.
2. What a Car Crash Does to You: When I was a teenager growing up in California, we had to watch a gruesome film called Red Asphalt in high school driver’s ed. (I’m guessing my very mention of this is bringing back memories for some of you now.) While this level of graphic storytelling of bodies on the pavement is sometimes not effective in deterring risk, I still believe that for some people, real stories from real doctors and victims can make a difference if they’re told authentically. If you’re a forensic expert, a coroner, an emergency room doctor, or an EMT who has seen the physical and emotional devastation of a vehicle crash up close, had to notify families, and clean up the aftermath, I want to hear from you. It’s atrocious that we’ve normalized the nearly 40,000 deaths and millions of injuries that occur every year in the US by not doing anything substantive about it. It’s time to change that—constructively.
3. Teaching a Teen with Autism and ADHD: Again, I’ve received several reader requests for this topic. What are the unique challenges of teaching an adolescent who has autism or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder to drive? How does a parent navigate this landscape if they’re coaching their son or daughter behind the wheel? And, if you’re a driving instructor, what do you do differently and what do you watch for? And, if you’re law enforcement and you’ve encountered a driver with autism, have you ever mistaken their antisocial evasion for more possibly sinister motives? What do new drivers with autism or ADHD need to know to ensure their safety?
Even if you aren’t a doctor, driving instructor, police, or an EMT, but you know someone who is and might be willing to help, please pass their info along to me and I will follow up. You can leave comments on this blog post below, or email me directly at miae@drivingintherealworld.com.
As ever, I’m grateful for your help. Thank you.
—Mi Ae
