CALGARY – It can be difficult for families to discuss giving up driving with their aging parents but the Alberta Motor Association says it’s one that often needs to take place.
The problem is how can you tell someone who has been driving for decades that it’s time to hand over the keys?
Experts say there are no easy answers, but the AMA hopes to help with a series of courses and seminars.
“You have to have a strategy going into it. The last thing anyone wants to feel is that the decision is being made for them,” says Chris Rechner. “So we teach strategies on how to have that conversation, how to begin, and how to be respectful so it doesn’t feel like giving up independence just to transition to another way of getting around.”
Although some elderly drivers may pass mandatory medical tests once they reach the age of 75, it may still not be safe for them to be behind the wheel.
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76-year-old driver Bob Dewar says it helps if older drivers could be given proof they’re not safe on the road.
“I think you have to present solid information to aging drivers to what their limitations are.”
On the other hand, some seniors are capable of driving well into their nineties.
University of Calgary psychology professor Chip Scialfa has been developing a hazard perception test for aging drivers. It involves a touch screen; the driver must touch the screen whenever they notice a hazard and a computer records the results.
Scialfa says the program, once refined, could be used by doctors or made available online.
“There’s a growing amount of evidence but it hasn’t been put together in a package that can be given to older people in a user-friendly way that lets them show their best but reveals those people who may have some problems.”
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