The North West District has since the beginning of the year recorded the least number of road accidents when compared to other districts countrywide, the Motor Vehicle Accident Fund (MVA) has revealed.
“Currently the North West District has recorded only 13 accidents since January while North East registered 21, North Central 29, South Central 180 and South East registering 33 accidents,” MVA Case Management Supervisor Bill Audit, Ikageng Busang revealed.
He was speaking recently during a Caretaker Training and Counseling workshop for claimants with severe injuries and their caregivers in Maun recently.
He revealed that at least 175 people have died in road accidents in Botswana from January to date as compared to 175 lives in 2022 and 164 in the year 2021 over the same period.
Busang further noted that the country loses more than 400 lives in a year in road accidents.
Meanwhile the Clinical Case Manager for MVA Neo
Oabile noted that MVA offers medical care and rehabilitation, incidental expenses including accommodation, transport, subsistence costs.
Oabile said they also do hospital and home visits, and ensure that social workers offer the necessary psychological support through counseling and empowerment on stress management, tips, coping mechanism and family counseling.
Meanwhile, some claimants and caretakers had during the event came forward to share experiences on their journeys to rehabilitation. They further imparted the knowledge and advices regarding the management of stress, depression and acceptance. One of the claimants Reginah Gabriel who was involved in an accident in 2013 advised other claimants to have self-love, respect and also consider the feelings of their caretakers. “Let us not be mad at them but appreciate their effort,” Gabriel advised.
She further advised them not to give up on themselves and let their disabilities make them believe that they are not able.
The workshop was meant to promote the psychosocial wellbeing for both claimants and caregivers and also capacitate caregiver, strengthen the relationship between the caretaker and claimant as well as to instill motive in the return to work initiative and smooth community re-integration following a life changing injury.
It was further meant to share welfare support services provided by other stakeholders in the community as well as to bring along the old case claimants to share their experiences during their journey of rehabilitation and to impart knowledge on management of their severe injuries.
