title: Fatalities in the Peace Corps. A retrospective study: 1962 through 1983.
abstract: Fatalities among Peace Corps volunteers were analyzed for 1962 through 1983, with individual case histories reviewed for all deaths from 1977 through 1983. Unintentional injuries accounted for 70% of the 185 deaths of Peace Corps volunteers, with motor vehicle crashes the number 1 cause of death. The death rate from unintentional injuries for women was significantly higher than the comparable US rate. Motorcycles caused 12% of all Peace Corps deaths and 33% of all motor vehicle deaths. Suicide has emerged as a leading cause of death among volunteers, accounting for 13% of all deaths from 1981 through 1983. Greater emphasis on injury control measures is needed to reduce this toll.
mesh_terms: D000059:Accidents; D000063:Accidents, Traffic; D000328:Adult; D004332:Drowning / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006077:Government Agencies; D006801:Humans; D007391:International Cooperation; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009026:Mortality; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013405:Suicide / Q000453:epidemiology; D014481:United States; D014838:Volunteers; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000401:mortality*