Fort Bliss Monitor

Driving safety home – Army targets #1 killer of Soldiers

David Crozier
USASMA Public Affairs

A 22-year-old Soldier redeploys to his home station from Iraq. After checking in and clearing the unit he jumps into his sports car he hasn’t seen in a year and races off on 15 days leave.

Following two days of trying to catch up on lost party time with his friends, Day Three takes him down a familiar country road. It’s a road he’s been on many times before, but this time he’s feeling exhilarated, pumped up – and so is the speed of his car.

On Day Four a knock comes to his mother’s door. It’s the kind of knock a mother should never have to answer – her Soldier son, she is told, was pronounced dead at 3:15 a.m., the result of a car accident. His unit is also apprised of the situation. They will have to train another to fill his shoes.

This scenario is played out all too often in today’s Army. In fact, according to officials at the Army Safety Center, privately owned vehicle accidents are the number one killer of Soldiers. And since 1998 speed tops the deadly list as the reason for the accidents. Failing that inattention, fatigue, alcohol, drugs and failure to use seatbelts or wear helmets round out the next five deadliest POV mistakes.

The problem is so large that it caught the attention of the Secretary of Defense who in early 2003 mandated the Army reduce accidents and fatalities by 50 percent. The Army’s top safety guru, Brig. Gen. Joseph A. Smith, took that mandate to his troops and within a few months they had developed a new tool to help Soldiers and first-line supervisors identify and allay potential deadly risks involved in operating privately owned vehicles. That new tool is an interactive Web-based application called Army Safety Management Information System or more commonly called the POV Risk Assessment Tool. Currently the program is set up to compute risk assessments for Soldier travel within the continental U.S., but work is underway to allow Soldiers stationed overseas to utilize the new tool and Safety Center officials stated that it should be completed soon.

“I see the POV Risk Assessment Tool as an important element to our POV accident prevention program,” said the general. “The key [to reducing accidents] is for Soldiers to be accountable for their own risk assessment. This tool allows their first-line supervisors to monitor and be aware of the Soldier’s travel plans and make adjustments if necessary.”

Smith explained that ASMIS-1 is an opportunity for Web-based technology to provide information on route selection, weather conditions and possible risks to the Soldier and then allows for the connection of “leadership dots” to ensure risks are acknowledged.

“Keeping the responsibility for POV travel at the right level and providing sound travel information will go a long way to improving our safety record,” Smith said. “ASMIS-1 used with our POV tool box and other items on our Website will make a powerful combination.”

According to James “Al” Brown, an Army Safety Center traffic safety manager, ASMIS-1 is a “one-stop shop” for Soldiers and supervisors to assess the risks of POV driving while providing a tool for documenting and counseling Soldiers before they leave on extended trips.

“The program is all about educating you about the risks associated with driving on the road. [The program] asks you questions like how far are you going, what type of car are you driving and whether or not you will be wearing your seatbelt or helmet, if you are riding a motorcycle,” Brown said. “Then it will give you controls you can check that reduce the risk. It then takes you to our Risk Management Information System where all of our accident [database] information is kept and it will show you accidents that have happened under similar trips and controls to let you see that if you don’t change things this could happen to you.”

Smith said the success of the program relies on the Soldier’s honesty when answering the questions, but that the program is designed to help Soldiers’ proceed safely.

“There are no trick questions here. You are going to have to go through and check all these blocks and it’s going to be a reminder,” he said. “When was the last time many Soldiers took a driving test? Back when they were 16. You forget about things and this program is going to help the Soldiers refresh themselves on the current stuff.”

The program begins with the Soldier logging onto the ASMIS Website. From there the Soldier is asked to input their demographics – age, MOS, duty station, experience level, etc. Once the Soldier has filled out the log-on portion of the program, ASMIS-1 sends an e-mail to the Soldier’s AKO account to with information on how to gain access to the POV Risk Assess-ment Tool.

The Soldier can then log-on to the site and enter planned travel information. From there ASMIS-1 takes the Soldier to the next page where Travel Factors will be determined – type of vehicle driven, use of seatbelts, amount of rest before the trip, start time, alcohol usage and travel dates. The next page of the program is the Hazard Identification section where information input from the previous page is used to determine hazards encountered by others under similar circumstances. Under this section ASMIS-1 informs the Soldier of hazards like fatigue, speeding and more, and then relates those hazards to a real-life accident that took a life.
From Hazard Identification, ASMIS-1 then moves to the Risk Management Matrix Assessment where the Soldier is given a risk score. From that page the Soldier moves on to the Implement Controls page and has an opportunity to see the risks involved based on the Soldier’s input of travel plans and then allows the Soldier to select additional measures to lower that risk. Finally, ASMIS-1 returns the Soldier to the Risk Management Matrix to view the final risk score. If it is still too high, the program offers more controls.

Of particular significance to the program is the fact that Soldiers using the POV Risk Assessment Tool enter their supervisor’s AKO account information when giving their demographic information, Brown explained. Then once a trip report is filed with the POV Risk Assessment Tool, an e-mail can be generated to their supervisor that outlines the Soldier’s planned trip and the risks involved. This e-mail can then become a counseling tool for the supervisor; an opportunity to jointly assess risks and controls before the Soldier departs for the planned trip.

“You have the option of making the trip report official or non-official. But I work for you and you tell me, ‘Brown, you are going on a pass. I want you to fill out the forms on ASMIS-1 so you can go on the pass,’” Brown said. “But then again, let’s just say I am going on a pass with my family and I say, ‘that’s a pretty good tool. Let me fill it out on my own.’ I will have that option.”

Once the form is filled out and you have assessed your risks and changed or modified the controls, the program then gives you an opportunity to view the weather forecasts and get a road map from Map Quest®.
“I hope our spiral development will continue to improve this Web-based technology to the point our Soldiers see it as a valuable personal tool for travel,” said Smith. “POVs continue to be our number one killer of Soldiers. This has a big impact on our combat readiness at a time when we need our highly trained Soldiers to fight the Global War on Terror.”

For information, go to safety. army.mil/home.html, click on POV Risk Assessment Tool under the Quick View section.



www.bliss.army.mil	Published for the Fort Bliss/El Paso, Texas Community	July 1, 2004

<map name="boxmap-b4"> <area shape="rect" coords="0, 589, 120, 600" href="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm/privacy-policy.html?o=1" > <area coords="0,0,10000,10000" href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=&creative=92501&camp=8117&link_code=dl1&path=subst/misc/amazon-cobrand-cc/v3/marketing-from-associates-step1.html/ref%3Db1_assoc_29" > </map>	Driving safety home – Army targets #1 killer of Soldiers David Crozier USASMA Public Affairs A 22-year-old Soldier redeploys to his home station from Iraq. After checking in and clearing the unit he jumps into his sports car he hasn’t seen in a year and races off on 15 days leave. Following two days of trying to catch up on lost party time with his friends, Day Three takes him down a familiar country road. It’s a road he’s been on many times before, but this time he’s feeling exhilarated, pumped up – and so is the speed of his car. On Day Four a knock comes to his mother’s door. It’s the kind of knock a mother should never have to answer – her Soldier son, she is told, was pronounced dead at 3:15 a.m., the result of a car accident. His unit is also apprised of the situation. They will have to train another to fill his shoes. This scenario is played out all too often in today’s Army. In fact, according to officials at the Army Safety Center, privately owned vehicle accidents are the number one killer of Soldiers. And since 1998 speed tops the deadly list as the reason for the accidents. Failing that inattention, fatigue, alcohol, drugs and failure to use seatbelts or wear helmets round out the next five deadliest POV mistakes. The problem is so large that it caught the attention of the Secretary of Defense who in early 2003 mandated the Army reduce accidents and fatalities by 50 percent. The Army’s top safety guru, Brig. Gen. Joseph A. Smith, took that mandate to his troops and within a few months they had developed a new tool to help Soldiers and first-line supervisors identify and allay potential deadly risks involved in operating privately owned vehicles. That new tool is an interactive Web-based application called Army Safety Management Information System or more commonly called the POV Risk Assessment Tool. Currently the program is set up to compute risk assessments for Soldier travel within the continental U.S., but work is underway to allow Soldiers stationed overseas to utilize the new tool and Safety Center officials stated that it should be completed soon. “I see the POV Risk Assessment Tool as an important element to our POV accident prevention program,” said the general. “The key [to reducing accidents] is for Soldiers to be accountable for their own risk assessment. This tool allows their first-line supervisors to monitor and be aware of the Soldier’s travel plans and make adjustments if necessary.” Smith explained that ASMIS-1 is an opportunity for Web-based technology to provide information on route selection, weather conditions and possible risks to the Soldier and then allows for the connection of “leadership dots” to ensure risks are acknowledged. “Keeping the responsibility for POV travel at the right level and providing sound travel information will go a long way to improving our safety record,” Smith said. “ASMIS-1 used with our POV tool box and other items on our Website will make a powerful combination.” According to James “Al” Brown, an Army Safety Center traffic safety manager, ASMIS-1 is a “one-stop shop” for Soldiers and supervisors to assess the risks of POV driving while providing a tool for documenting and counseling Soldiers before they leave on extended trips. “The program is all about educating you about the risks associated with driving on the road. [The program] asks you questions like how far are you going, what type of car are you driving and whether or not you will be wearing your seatbelt or helmet, if you are riding a motorcycle,” Brown said. “Then it will give you controls you can check that reduce the risk. It then takes you to our Risk Management Information System where all of our accident [database] information is kept and it will show you accidents that have happened under similar trips and controls to let you see that if you don’t change things this could happen to you.” Smith said the success of the program relies on the Soldier’s honesty when answering the questions, but that the program is designed to help Soldiers’ proceed safely. “There are no trick questions here. You are going to have to go through and check all these blocks and it’s going to be a reminder,” he said. “When was the last time many Soldiers took a driving test? Back when they were 16. You forget about things and this program is going to help the Soldiers refresh themselves on the current stuff.” The program begins with the Soldier logging onto the ASMIS Website. From there the Soldier is asked to input their demographics – age, MOS, duty station, experience level, etc. Once the Soldier has filled out the log-on portion of the program, ASMIS-1 sends an e-mail to the Soldier’s AKO account to with information on how to gain access to the POV Risk Assess-ment Tool. The Soldier can then log-on to the site and enter planned travel information. From there ASMIS-1 takes the Soldier to the next page where Travel Factors will be determined – type of vehicle driven, use of seatbelts, amount of rest before the trip, start time, alcohol usage and travel dates. The next page of the program is the Hazard Identification section where information input from the previous page is used to determine hazards encountered by others under similar circumstances. Under this section ASMIS-1 informs the Soldier of hazards like fatigue, speeding and more, and then relates those hazards to a real-life accident that took a life. From Hazard Identification, ASMIS-1 then moves to the Risk Management Matrix Assessment where the Soldier is given a risk score. From that page the Soldier moves on to the Implement Controls page and has an opportunity to see the risks involved based on the Soldier’s input of travel plans and then allows the Soldier to select additional measures to lower that risk. Finally, ASMIS-1 returns the Soldier to the Risk Management Matrix to view the final risk score. If it is still too high, the program offers more controls. Of particular significance to the program is the fact that Soldiers using the POV Risk Assessment Tool enter their supervisor’s AKO account information when giving their demographic information, Brown explained. Then once a trip report is filed with the POV Risk Assessment Tool, an e-mail can be generated to their supervisor that outlines the Soldier’s planned trip and the risks involved. This e-mail can then become a counseling tool for the supervisor; an opportunity to jointly assess risks and controls before the Soldier departs for the planned trip. “You have the option of making the trip report official or non-official. But I work for you and you tell me, ‘Brown, you are going on a pass. I want you to fill out the forms on ASMIS-1 so you can go on the pass,’” Brown said. “But then again, let’s just say I am going on a pass with my family and I say, ‘that’s a pretty good tool. Let me fill it out on my own.’ I will have that option.” Once the form is filled out and you have assessed your risks and changed or modified the controls, the program then gives you an opportunity to view the weather forecasts and get a road map from Map Quest®. “I hope our spiral development will continue to improve this Web-based technology to the point our Soldiers see it as a valuable personal tool for travel,” said Smith. “POVs continue to be our number one killer of Soldiers. This has a big impact on our combat readiness at a time when we need our highly trained Soldiers to fight the Global War on Terror.” For information, go to safety. army.mil/home.html, click on POV Risk Assessment Tool under the Quick View section.