Farm Suicides in Wisconsin, 2017–2018: Preliminary Findings and a Call for Future Research

Details

• Personal Author:
  Burke R ; Redmond E ; Shutske J ; Weichelt B
• Description:
  Studies across the last few decades have consistently found farmers and farmworkers at an elevated risk of death by suicide compared to other occupational groups in the United States. Still, there is currently no comprehensive national surveillance system for agricultural-related injuries or suicides. For this study, we analyzed Wisconsin death certificate data from 2017 and 2018 to identify the burden of suicide among farmers and farmworkers. In 2017 and 2018, 44 farm-related suicides were identified, or 14.3 per 100,000 farmers and farmworkers. The median age of victims was 51.5 +/- 20, and six (13.6%) were female. As these suicide cases were cross-checked, we found that none were identifiable solely from previously published news media or obituaries, indicating: (1) a clear need for a multi-sourced suicide data approach and inter-agency collaborations for future research, and (2) the need for a deeper investigation into the reporting of farm-related suicides. These data are necessary for informing state and local level policy, resource prioritization, and the evaluation of intervention efforts. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Agriculture Farmers Mental Health Nervous System Occupational Health Safety Suicide
• Keywords:
  Agricultural Workers Author Keywords: Agriculture Farm Farm Workers Injury Mental Health Surveillance
• ISSN:
  2313-576X
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 5 ; Wisconsin
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  51
• Volume:
  7
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20068062
• Citation:
  Safety 2021 Sep; 7(3):51
• Contact Point Address:
  Bryan Weichelt, National Farm Medicine Center, Marshfield Clinic Research Institute, Marshfield, WI 54449, USA
• Email:
  helt.bryan@marshfieldresearch.org
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2021
• NORA Priority Area:
  Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
• Performing Organization:
  Marshfield Clinic Research Foundation
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20080930
• Source Full Name:
  Safety
• End Date:
  20250929
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:8716233b2c5e2e50a78b73e190cb607879bb020457a2c6207d1b045ad3313e40063ca128e72d31ca51d07a0111e13e7fcd3f82d01cbb7664dd988cfe3ed0f842
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/230281/cdc_230281_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 212.52 KB ]