Contributor

Seniors invited to take part, improve car comfort and safety

Students in the Occupational Therapy Assistant program at Daytona State College will put their training into practice by participating in the March 6 CarFit®  event – a unique program that offers older adults the opportunity to check how their personal cars “fit” them.

Created in 2005 by the American Society on Aging and developed in collaboration with AAA (American Automobile Association), AARP and the American Occupational Therapy Association, the CarFit® check takes approximately 20 minutes to complete and is designed to help older drivers find out how well they currently fit their personal vehicle. The program identifies actions drivers can take to improve their fit, and to promote conversations about driver safety and community mobility.

WHAT: CarFit®

WHEN: Wednesday, March 6, 8:30-11:30 a.m.

WHERE: Madison Glen Apartments, 570 Sterthaus Dr, Ormond Beach, FL 32174

“Students will lead older drivers through a 12-point checklist with their vehicle,” said OTA Adjunct Instructor Sam Smith. “It’s a great opportunity for our students to work in the community, and each assessment concludes with recommendations for car adjustments and adaptations that could make the individual’s cars fit better or enhance their safety.”

According to the CarFit® website – car-fit.org – older drivers are often the safest drivers in that they are more likely to wear their seatbelts and less likely to speed or drink and drive. However, older drivers are more likely to be killed or seriously injured when a crash occurs due to the greater fragility of their aging bodies. Driver safety programs improve adult driver safety by addressing cognitive abilities and skills; however, older drivers can also improve their safety by ensuring their cars are properly adjusted for them. A proper fit can greatly increase not only the driver’s safety but also the safety of others.

Register online for the free CarFit® event, visit car-fit.org/carfit. For more information, call (386) 506-3713.

ABOUT DAYTONA STATE
Offering more than 100 certificate, associate and bachelor’s degree programs, Daytona State College has responded to the education and workforce training needs of Volusia and Flagler counties and beyond for more than 60 years. The college enrolls nearly 28,000 students a year at its seven instructional sites, with graduates serving in critical fields including health care, emergency services, business, education, hospitality, engineering, technology and more.

Daytona State has been recognized as a leader in higher education numerous times, consistently by U.S. News & World Report, which ranks the college among the Top Tier Best Online Bachelor’s Programs  seven years running. The U.S. Department of Education’s College Affordability and Transparency Center has ranked DSC among the top 50 most affordable public four-year institutions in the country, with less than half the tuition of the national average. Community College Week, a leading publication in higher education, annually continues to feature the college in its list of Top 100 Associate Degree Producers. And for three years in a row, U.S. News & World Report has ranked DSC among its Top Online Bachelor’s Programs for Veterans.