CarFit Event Helps Seniors Feel Safe and Comfortable Behind the Wheel

Aspirus St. Luke's focuses on injury prevention with senior drivers

DULUTH, Minn. — Aspirus St. Luke’s held their CarFit event Friday afternoon. The goal? Make senior drivers safer and feel more comfortable in their vehicles.

As part of their injury prevention work, Aspirius St. Luke’s is doing their part to keep seniors safe on the road. At Friday’s CarFit event, seniors went through a 12-point checklist with volunteers. Trauma nurse Jane Smalley said having a properly adjusted car can make a huge difference.

“A common thing is there’re two drivers almost always in most families and they tend not to adjust things a lot,” Smalley said. “So they’re not seeing as well. So it’s the mirror placement, they’re maybe not seeing, they have bigger blind spots. They’re not able to do that. Sometimes they’re too close to the steering wheel. So that airbag going off, that’s almost 200 miles an hour coming up.”

Volunteers helped adjust mirrors and driver’s seats. They checked brake lights, windshield wipers, and other safety features to ensure everything was working properly. Smalley says today is a great reminder that as we change, we should change our cars accordingly.