By Cecilia Chan | East Valley Tribune
The electric scooters making headway into Gilbert and the rest of the East Valley have been linked to fractures, sprains, bruises and abrasions – and even death.
Doctors are dealing with the fallout from the popularity of the two-wheel rentals that can go as fast as 15 mph. Roll-out of these ubiquitous scooters started in 2017.
“At Banner Baywood Medical Center in Mesa, we see electric scooter-related injuries in the emergency department fairly regularly, about two per month,” said Corey Schubert, a Banner Health spokesman.
“At Banner Gateway Medical Center in Gilbert, an ER doc said he has personally treated two cases in the last couple of months. The injuries weren’t major; one involved a sprained ankle and another involved abrasions and contusions.”
At Banner Desert Medical Center in Mesa recently, an emergency-room doctor treated three cases in one day, according to Shubert.
“I think we’ve seen a little bit of everything, from road rash to fracture and, of course, head injuries,” said Tracey Fejt, a registered nurse and Banner’s injury-prevention coordinator. “At Banner Baywood, I’ve seen one where someone ran into a wall. None of them wear any safety gear.”
The Banner cases involved all age groups and likely included pedestrians, according to Fejt.
