iPod to monitor young trauma victims Meg Watson-Ginnette was pinned under a 4WD and now carries an iPod to help doctors determine how she is recovering. CHILDREN recovering from trauma and severe injuries will be fitted with iPods to record their every move after leaving hospital under a world-first trial in Melbourne. In an effort to better understand the impact of severe trauma on their lives and help them overcome it, patients from the Royal Children's Hospital will wear the devices to randomly record conversations to monitor their activities, responses and interactions with others. The study - being undertaken by Dr Eva Alisic of the Monash Injury Research Institute, in collaboration with the RCH and the University of Arizona - will allow trauma doctors and psychologists to determine how children are coping by talking about their injuries. "It is to gain an idea of how much time they spend with family, to what extent do they talk about the incident, and is it in a positive or negative way," Dr Alisic said. Because it takes in 10 per cent of their day, it gives us a good representation of what their day looks like - whether they are playing, chatting, watching television. We don't know very well what makes the difference with how you respond to trauma. We think social support is really important, so I am hoping we can gain more of a picture of that. In the trial, the lives of 100 victims - aged three to 16 - of car crashes, sports injuries, assaults or other trauma will be monitored in 30-second bites, recorded on average every five minutes. Meg Watson-Ginnette, 16, said she felt reassured by the iPod while trying to come to terms with almost losing her life. On January 13, Meg was pinned under a four-wheel-drive that ploughed into the crowd during the Dalyston Mud Run, with paramedics believing she had a broken left leg, a shattered pelvis, and possible spinal and head trauma as they flew her to the RCH. Remarkably, scans cleared Meg of any ongoing injuries, but it has been an effort to adjust to her close call and the agonising pain she suffered. I don't remember actually seeing the car come off the track ... I remember falling off and turning to my right and a car wheel was right there," she said. I just had no clue how I got there or where I was, or what had happened, and I was in the most excruciating pain I have ever been through. She said the monitor was a good idea.