Morning Ag Clips logo
  • Subscribe ❯
  • PORTAL ❯
  • LOGIN ❯
  • By Keyword
  • By topic
  • By state
  • Home
  • Events
  • Jobs
  • Store
  • Advertise
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Subscribe to our
    daily email
    ❯
  • Portal Registration❯
  • Login❯
  • policy
  • tractors & machinery
  • education
  • conservation
  • webinars
  • business
  • dairy
  • cattle
  • poultry
  • swine
  • corn
  • soybeans
  • organic
  • specialty crops
  • Alabama
  • Alaska
  • Arizona
  • Arkansas
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Connecticut
  • Delaware
  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • Hawaii
  • Idaho
  • Illinois
  • Indiana
  • Iowa
  • Kansas
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Maine
  • Maryland
  • Massachusetts
  • Michigan
  • Minnesota
  • Mississippi
  • Missouri
  • Montana
  • Nebraska
  • Nevada
  • New Hampshire
  • New Jersey
  • New Mexico
  • New York
  • North Carolina
  • North Dakota
  • Ohio
  • Oklahoma
  • Oregon
  • Pennsylvania
  • Rhode Island
  • South Carolina
  • South Dakota
  • Tennessee
  • Texas
  • Utah
  • Vermont
  • Virginia
  • Washington
  • West Virginia
  • Wisconsin
  • Wyoming

Morning Ag Clips

  • By Keyword
  • By topic
  • By state
  • policy
  • tractors & machinery
  • education
  • conservation
  • webinars
  • business
  • dairy
  • cattle
  • poultry
  • swine
  • corn
  • soybeans
  • organic
  • specialty crops
  • Home
  • Events
  • Jobs
  • Store
  • Advertise
Home » Study reveals ag-related injuries more numerous than previously known
research safety youth in agriculture tractors & machinery
FARM SAFETY ...

Study reveals ag-related injuries more numerous than previously known

The research revealed that nearly a third of ag-related injuries involve youths

PUBLISHED ON June 23, 2021

The research revealed that nearly a third of ag-related injuries involve youths. Small farms are family-oriented businesses, and often they have all their family members helping out. And the children who are helping out or visiting the farm are exposed to hazards that they may not understand or know how to react to. (Photo: Linda Fetzer, Penn State)

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — A new study by Penn State researchers, who looked at emergency room admissions across the U.S. over a recent five-year period in a novel way, suggests that the agriculture industry is even more dangerous than previously believed.

The research revealed that from Jan. 1, 2015, to Dec. 31, 2019, more than 60,000 people were treated in emergency departments for nonfatal, agricultural-related injuries. Significantly, nearly a third of those injured were youths, according to study author Judd Michael, Nationwide Insurance Professor of Agricultural Safety and Health and professor of agricultural and biological engineering, College of Agricultural Sciences.

“This study revealed the true magnitude of the agricultural-related injury problem,” he said. “We were slightly surprised at the sheer number of farm-related injuries and concerned by the high number of youths who were injured.”

Before this research, knowledge of nonfatal agricultural injuries was somewhat limited by the available sources of information, Michael noted. Existing data are based mostly on regional or national periodic surveys, he added. The Bureau of Labor Statistics captures only nonfatal occupational injuries through its Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, often called the SOII.

That survey collects data on work-related nonfatal injuries and illnesses among employees in all industries in the U.S. But its data exclude self-employed farmers and family members as well as workers on farms with fewer than 11 employees.

“It has been estimated that the SOII was undercounting occupational injuries and illnesses in agriculture by about 78%,” Michael said.

To reach their conclusion, researchers conducted a cross-sectional study using data from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s National Electronic Injury Surveillance System — or NEISS — for patients treated in emergency departments over the five-year period. By querying all cases in the NEISS database using the location code “farm,” and with a narrative search using relevant key words, they created a unique view of one of the country’s most dangerous occupations.

Over the period, an estimated 62,079 people were treated in an emergency department for agricultural-related injuries. The mean age estimate in this population was 39 years old, with ages ranging from 1 to 95. Almost two-thirds of patients were male, and almost 80% were white. Approximately 30% and 22% of those injured were youth and elderly patients, respectively. These age groups are usually not present in the typical workforce but are involved in agriculture.

According to findings recently published in the Journal of Agromedicine, most injuries occurred from April through September. The most common injury was fracture, followed by open wound or amputation. The primary source of injury was in the “vehicles” category, with tractors being the dominant vehicle type.

Historically, researchers have known that youth are at greater risk than adults for injury around a farm or ag environment, but it is not necessarily because they are working, Michael noted. Rather, in family farm environments where the kids are present, they are exposed to dangers.

“Small farms are family-oriented businesses, and often they have all their family members helping out,” he said. “And the kids who are helping out or visiting the farm are exposed to hazards that they may not understand or know how to react to. They’re not mature enough to foresee hazardous situations. And that leads to injuries or worse, in some cases, fatalities.”

Getting a better handle on the number of agriculture-related injuries and how they occur is important, Michael pointed out, because that knowledge may lead to a reduction in accidents.

“Agriculture and forestry are among the most hazardous industries in the U.S., and part of our overall goal here at Penn State in the ag safety and health program, and certainly within my role as the Nationwide Insurance Professor, is to conduct research that will help us understand the causes of injuries and fatalities,” he said. “Because we know that if we understand why they happen, it’s much easier to prevent them.”

–Penn State
via EurekAlert!

For more articles concerning farm safety, click here.

RECOMMENDED ARTICLES

The Big E returns for 17 good timin’ days! Sept. 16 - Oct. 2, 2022
September 08, 2022

WEST SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — The Big E is back and better than ever! With more food, fun, music and must-see attractions, you won’t want to miss a thing! Here is the most up-to-date information on this year’s Fair. Please note: All information is subject to change. Entertainment: From major headliners with chart-topping hits, to up […]

Smarter planning needed to safeguard Midwest farmland
July 11, 2022

WASHINGTON — Smart growth and investment in Midwest downtowns and main streets must occur now to secure the land that grows our food, according to American Farmland Trust’s new report Farms Under Threat 2040: Choosing an Abundant Future and the accompanying web mapping tool.   AFT’s Farms Under Threat research has shown that by 2040, as many […]

Growth regulator herbicide injury on soybean
August 08, 2021

MINNEAPOLIS — Multiple herbicide-resistant soybeans such as XtendFlex (resistant to dicamba, glyphosate, and glufosinate) and Enlist E3 (resistant to 2,4-D choline, glyphosate, and glufosinate) have created the opportunity for post-emergence “over-the-top” application of growth regulators (dicamba and 2,4-D choline) to soybean. However, off-target damage to sensitive soybean from these herbicides is widespread in Minnesota and […]

Spread the word

Browse More Clips

CEA producers join RII to support USDA project

New website breaks down the confusing laws behind food labels

Primary Sidebar

MORE

NATIONAL CLIPS

The Cattle Price Discovery and Transparency Act
February 2, 2023
2022 Heritage Breed Microgrants awarded
February 2, 2023
Funding to improve seniors' access to locally grown foods
February 2, 2023
dairy milk milking robotic milker
U.S. dairy praises USTR move to hold Canada responsible for USMCA violations
February 2, 2023
As prices ease, 1.45 billion chicken wings on the menu for Super Bowl LVII
February 2, 2023
  • Trending
  • Latest

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE...

Cattle producers, farmers and farm businesses in south central Iowa will learn about the latest crop production and grazing research and trends during the fall field day at Iowa State University’s McNay Memorial Research and Demonstration Farm Aug. 6. (Courtesy of ISU Extension and Outreach)
Iowa cattle inventory report
February 3, 2023
Iowa Pork Regional Conferences
Iowa Pork Regional Conferences Feb. 20-23
February 3, 2023
Wisconsin cattle inventory report
February 3, 2023
Cattle on Feed
Minnesota cattle inventory report
February 3, 2023
A check-in with the Michigan field office of the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service shows a relatively small, but important farming sector across the region. (All photos by Jim Isleib, MSU Extension)
Michigan Cattle Inventory report
February 3, 2023

Footer

MORNING AG CLIPS

  • Contact Us
  • Sponsors
  • About Us
  • Advertise with Us
  • Privacy Statement
  • Terms of Service

CONNECT WITH US

  • Like Us on Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

TRACK YOUR TRADE

  • Markets & Economy
  • Cattle Updates
  • Dairy News
  • Policy & Politics
  • Corn Alerts

QUICK LINKS

  • Account
  • Portal Membership
  • Just Me, Kate
  • Farmhouse Communication

Get the MAC App Today!

Get it on Google Play
Download on the App Store

© 2023 Morning Ag Clips, LLC. All Rights Reserved.