Adapting First Aid Trainings to Meet the Needs of Commercial Fishermen During the COVID 19 Pandemic

Details

• Personal Author:
  Bovbjerg V ; Doerr A ; Gladics A ; Kincl, Laurel ; Vaughan A
• Description:
  Background: Commercial fishing is dangerous. The US Coast Guard requires each vessel to have at least one CPR/First Aid-trained crewmember. The Fishermen First Aid and Safety Training (FFAST) course, delivered since 2016 and tailored to commercial fishing, was modified during the pandemic to meet public health requirements, to support fishermen at a time when trainings were severely limited. Methods: FFAST is conducted in fishing ports, and uses skills, scenarios and hazard assessments to deliver first aid training based on injury statistics and fishery-specific working conditions. FFAST shifted to a hybrid format in 2020 with remote instruction coupled with in-person skills training completed by small crews on their fishing vessel. We assessed student knowledge and skills, and whether participants would recommend the course ("very likely" to "very unlikely") and found the material useful ("very" to "not at all"). Results: To date, 30 fishermen with an average of 15 years fishing experience (standard deviation [SD]=11 years) have completed three FFAST hybrid courses delivered in Oregon and Washington. The mean post-course test score was 90.0% (SD=6.8), and all passed the hands-on skill tests. All participants reported being either "very likely" (73.3%) or "likely" (26.7%) to recommend the course, and all reported the material either "very useful" (86.7%) or "useful" (13.3%). Despite preferring in-person training, participants reported the remote sessions "felt like it was one on one" and were a "very good use of time with fewer distractions." Participants appreciated retaining hands-on skill training. Conclusions: First aid training during the COVID-19 pandemic has not been accessible for many commercial fishermen. By successfully adapting our FFAST course to a hybrid model we offered fishermen an opportunity to receive required training while remaining safe. Maintaining such partnerships in the face of COVID-19 challenges is important to ensure long-term sustainability of commercial fishing and fishing communities. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  First Aid Hunting Occupational Health Safety Staff Development
• Keywords:
  First Aid Fishing Industry Information Dissemination Marine Workers Safety Education Training
• Publisher:
  American Public Health Association
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary
• Place as Subject:
  Oregon ; OSHA Region 10
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20067274
• Citation:
  Creating the Healthiest Nation: Strengthening Social Connectedness. APHA 149th Annual Meeting and Exposition, October 24-27, 2021, Denver, Colorado and virtual event. Washington, DC: American Public Health Association, 2021 Oct; :497514
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2022
• Performing Organization:
  Oregon State University
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20190901
• Source Full Name:
  Creating the Healthiest Nation: Strengthening Social Connectedness. APHA 149th Annual Meeting and Exposition, October 24-27, 2021, Denver, Colorado and virtual event
• End Date:
  20250831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:ec704b6fc28f40f9e22a1efffc5f4e84e082e5ece0e2b58b9f3bb9593e8de0ed5b7024294f39d3c7abe207f976055c361876d7dc9b42ce92c722e7a38f3fecb9
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/231384/cdc_231384_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 84.95 KB ]