Parachuting for charity: is it worth the money? A 5-year audit of parachute injuries in Tayside and the cost to the NHS

All parachute injuries from two local parachute centres over a 5-year period were analysed. Of 174 patients with injuries of varying severity, 94% were first-time charity-parachutists. The injury rate in charity parachutists was 11% at an average cost of pound 3751 per casualty. Sixty-three percent of casualties who were charity-parachutists required hospital admission, representing a serious injury rate of 7%, at an average cost of pound 5781 per patient. The amount raised per person for charity was pound 30. Each pound raised for charity cost the NHS pound 13.75 in return. Parachuting for charity costs more money than it raises, carries a high risk of serious personal injury and places a significant burden on health resources. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.