The impact of Benzodiazepines on Safe Driving

Benzodiazepines are frequently prescribed medications used to treat anxiety and aid sleep. However, they can have an impact on a person's ability to drive safely. Because driving is essential to independence and quality of life, Mr. Dubois and his colleagues examined the role of benzodiazepines in traffic crashes.

For his study, Mr. Dubois and his colleagues used a large database containing information on all American fatal traffic crashes from 1993 to 2007. They quantified the increase in risk of committing unsafe driving actions in drivers using benzodiazepines compared to drivers who were not using benzodiazepines.

The study results demonstrated that some drivers using benzodiazepines are at increased risk of committing unsafe driving actions. Given the findings, there is a need to look at better education for both users and clinicians of the potential risks involved with taking these medications.

This research project was part of Mr. Dubois' Master of Public Health thesis which, along with the degree, is now completed. He looks forward to drawing from the valuable experiences learned during this research project and degree, as he continues to work in health research.

As a Research Statistician with the St Joseph's Care Group (SJCG) Research Department, Mr. Dubois is very fortunate to be part of research teams at both SJCG and Lakehead University, Thunder Bay. He is excited that, as a team, they will continue their research on medications and driver safety.