The Keep Your Keys program is a driver-safety course geared toward people 55 and older, caregivers and facilitators, typically health educators, policy or highway patrol departments, nurses, etc. University of Missouri Health Care's Injury Prevention and Outreach Program provide resources for adults – both individuals and caregivers – who may need support to continue driving or retire from driving.
There are four main factors that can affect driving as one ages:
- Decreased flexibility and strength
- Decline in vision and/or hearing
- Cognitive issues
- Medication interactions
Staying safe on the road
To keep ourselves and our fellow motorists’ safe, it’s essential to self-assess our driving skills on a regular basis.
Ask yourself:
- Am I unable to keep up with the flow of traffic?
- Do I find myself getting lost or forgetting where I am going?
- Do I feel tired when I am driving?
- Have I been involved in a crash in the past year?
- Have others expressed a concern regarding my driving?
Take our driving self-assessment.
Whether you’re able to ease into driving retirement or it happens unexpectedly, it’s important to create a transportation plan that helps you stay active and social even if you can no longer drive.
Community and facilitator trainings
MU Health Care's Injury Prevention and Outreach team has received funding from the Missouri Department of Transportation to hold free community seminars and facilitator trainings throughout the state, which can be done in-person or virtually.
Upcoming Events
Interested in attending a free Keep Your Keys community seminar? Upcoming events in Missouri include:
- February 13: Keep Your Keys at 10:00 am Columbia Senior Activity Center. Learn more
- February 13: Keep Your Keys at 1:00 pm Osage Beach Senior Center. Learn more
- February 16: Keep Your Keys at 1:00 pm at Southview United Church of Christ. Learn more
- March 29: Keep Your Keys at 3:00 pm at East Lee’s Summit MCPL. Learn more
- March 30: Keep Your Keys at 3:00 pm at Blue Ridge MCPL. Learn more
- April 17: Keep Your Keys at 11:00 am Claycomo MCPL. Learn more
If you have any questions, please contact Beth Koster, Coordinator of Outreach, at kosterb@health.missouri.edu.
Keep Your Keys! for the Caregiver
Family members play a key role in noticing changes in driving ability and can do certain things to help their loved ones retire from driving. This role should be approached with care, compassion and proper planning. Our Caregiver Presentation focuses on the steps from beginning the conversation through the implementation of a plan for driving retirement. Tips are provided for observing driving skills, communicating your observations, developing a plan to keep the senior social and active, and evaluating the plan frequently to be sure it is successful.
