Farmwork-related injury among farmers 50 years of age and older in Kentucky and South Carolina: a cohort study, 2002-2005

Details

• Personal Author:
  Browning SR ; Charnigo RJ ; Marcum JL ; Reed DB
• Description:
  Farmers in the U.S. are becoming more diverse; the average age of the farmer is increasing, as is the number of women and minority farm operators. There is limited research on injury risk factors in these special populations of farmers. It is especially important to study the risk factors for injury in these growing and at-risk groups. A longitudinal survey was conducted of farmers (n = 1,394) age 50 and older who resided in Kentucky and South Carolina. The questionnaire was administered by telephone and mail surveys four times between 2002 and 2005 to the fixed cohort of farmers, obtained by convenience sample. Approximately half of the cohort was female, and the majority of the cohort worked less than 40 hours per week. This cohort reported a crude, non-fatal injury rate of 9.3 injured farmers per 100 per year. Farmers reporting chronic bronchitis/emphysema (estimated odds ratio [EOR] = 1.57), back problems (EOR = 1.37), arthritis (EOR = 1.31), 3 to 4 restless nights in the past week (EOR = 2.02), or 5 to 7 restless nights in the past week (EOR = 1.82) were at significantly higher odds of sustaining a farmwork-related injury as calculated by the generalized estimating equations (GEE) regression method Farmers operating equipment on highways (EOR = 1.51) or climbing higher than eight feet (EOR = 1.69) were at significantly higher odds of sustaining a farmwork-related injury, and females were at higher risk of injury when performing animal-related tasks (EOR = 3.00) or crop-related tasks (EOR = 2.21). Identified factors associated with farmwork-related injury should better inform agricultural health policies and guidelines for older farmers, such as policies governing the allowable number of hours worked per week and rest breaks, guidelines that advise appropriate types of farm tasks, and ergonomic engineering advances on farming equipment. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Age Factors Aging Agriculture Farmers Lung Diseases Musculoskeletal Diseases Occupational Health Race Factors Respiratory Tract Diseases Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Sleep Initiation And Maintenance Disorders Surveys And Questionnaires Women

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• Keywords:
  Age-factors Age-groups Agricultural-industry Agricultural-workers Author Keywords: Agricultural Injury Back-injuries Health-surveys Injuries Injury-prevention Lung-disorders Older Farmworkers Pulmonary-system-disorders Questionnaires Racial-factors Respiratory-system-disorders Risk-analysis Risk-factors Sleep-disorders

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• ISSN:
  1074-7583
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Kentucky ; Nebraska ; OSHA Region 4 ; OSHA Region 7 ; South Carolina
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  259-273
• Volume:
  17
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20039634
• Citation:
  J Agric Saf Health 2011 Jul; 17(3):259-273
• Contact Point Address:
  Jennifer L. Marcum, Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health, 301 Centennial Mall South, Lincoln, NE 68509
• Email:
  Jennifer.Marcum@Nebraska.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2011
• Performing Organization:
  University of Kentucky
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20010930
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Agricultural Safety and Health
• End Date:
  20070929
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:fa555faab1cbfdb8ef3b23985d94d26a6075013a60812ab8204ba70d86928b5607d22c8947626cb4158fe8fac9cfadd0ec692720a15e0e42c8cf247877bb1411
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/192806/cdc_192806_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 214.38 KB ]