[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 19 (Friday, February 18, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E297]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E297]]
                          BURN AWARENESS WEEK

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. RICHARD E. NEAL

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 17, 2005

  Mr. NEAL of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, I would like to call to the 
attention of my colleagues the activities of the American Burn 
Association (ABA) regarding its accomplishments and dedication to the 
care of burn victims. The ABA works tirelessly in its efforts involving 
the first line of defense: the prevention of burn injuries. February 
6th to the 12th is Burn Awareness Week so it is a fitting time to 
acknowledge the work of an organization devoted to this challenging 
field of medicine. The American Burn Association has more than 3,500 
members in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. 
Members include physicians, nurses, occupational and physical 
therapists, researchers, social workers, firefighters, emergency 
personnel, and, the underpinning of burn research, hospitals with burn 
centers. The multidisciplinary membership enhances its ability to work 
toward common goals with other organizations on educational/prevention 
programs.
  Each year, the ABA and other burn treatment entities work on a 
different burn prevention theme. The theme of Burn Awareness Week this 
year is the prevention of electrical burn injuries. The number of 
electrical injuries cared for in hospitals in the US is estimated at as 
many as 50,000; the cost of these injuries on the US economy is 
estimated at over one billion dollars per year. Many injuries and 
deaths can be prevented through an understanding of the dangers of 
power lines, electrical appliances, extension cords, and lightning. In 
the past, the ABA has sponsored Burn Awareness weeks focusing on Home 
Safety, Senior Burn Safety, Prevention of Gasoline Burns, and Scald 
Prevention, among others. Well over a million people are injured each 
year from burn related incidents and accidents.
  In addition to its traditional responsibilities, in recent years the 
ABA has worked hard to improve emergency response systems and to 
incorporate burn care into disaster preparedness systems in the country 
in light of new threats to the United States. In addition, countless 
ABA physicians, nurses, and health care workers are serving in Iraq and 
Afghanistan to treat America's injured soldiers.
  The American Burn Association stimulates and supports burn-related 
research, education, care, rehabilitation, and prevention through a 
variety of educational programs, fellowships, research, teaching, and 
publications, including the leading peer-reviewed, scientific journal 
in the burn field, the Journal of Burn Care & Rehabilitation.
  ABA membership is in virtually every state in the union and countless 
congressional districts. When the ABA holds its annual Legislative 
Leadership Conference in Washington April 5th through the 7th, I hope 
you will take the time to meet with your ABA constituents so that they 
may tell you more about their work in your hometown.

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