| Date: December 19, 2011 | Media Contact: | Chuck Moran |
| | | Pennsylvania Medical Society |
| For Immediate Release | | (717) 558-7820 |
The following is a joint statement from Henry Unger, MD, FACEP, president of the Pennsylvania Chapter, American College of Emergency Physicians, and Marilyn J. Heine, MD, FACP, FACEP, president of the Pennsylvania Medical Society and a practicing emergency medicine specialist.
(Harrisburg, PA) We are approaching the most dangerous holiday for young adults … New Year’s Day. While it’s a time to celebrate and wish for the best in 2012, for some the New Year will start off as a medical emergency.
Last December, a report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) indicated that emergency room visits for underage drinking on New Year’s Day had surpassed other national holidays including the Fourth of July and Memorial Day in 2009.
No one wants to start the New Year off in an emergency room, particularly for something that’s avoidable like drinking to excess. It’s no fun vomiting into a bucket or possibly being raced into surgery after a serious car accident.
The seriousness of underage drinking is further demonstrated by a study from West Virginia University, published this year in the Annals of Emergency Medicine. The study reviewed national data from 2006 and 2007, and found that during those years more than 140,000 pediatric patients were treated in emergency rooms across the country for alcohol-related disorders. The mean age of the patients was nearly 16 years. And, the combined costs for all the visits totaled more than half a billion dollars.
The Pennsylvania Chapter, American College of Emergency Physicians and the Pennsylvania Medical Society encourage everyone – no matter how old you are – to celebrate the New Year sensibly and safely. Furthermore, it’s good advice for any day of the year.
If you do consume alcohol, drink responsibly. Please do not get behind the wheel of a car if you have consumed alcohol or if your driving ability is impaired for any reason. Have a designated driver. Know what your limit is, and don’t drink to the point where you make yourself sick. The life you may save might just be yours.
And, for those who are underage, simply don’t drink. It’s the law.
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