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Judith Levy, MS, MPH, RN, Occupational Health Services, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, 300 East Randolph Street, Chicago, IL 60601-5099, 312-653-6132, judyandcarl1@msn.com, Pamela Levin, PhD, RN, Dept. of Community and Mental Health Nursing, Rush University Medical Center, 600 S. Paulina St., Suite 1080, Chicago, IL 60612, and Karen M. Conrad, PhD, RN, MPH, School of Public Health, Division of Health Policy and Administration, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1603 W. Taylor Street, M/C 923, Chicago, IL 60612-4394.
Abstract
The farm is considered to be one of the most hazardous workplaces in the U.S., according to injury and mortality rates. Adolescents make up a significant proportion of the agricultural workforce. Data from the Traumatic Injury Surveillance of Farms (TISF) was analyzed to gain knowledge about factors, injuries, and outcomes of injuries relating to adolescent workers, ages 10 to 19, in the agricultural setting. A secondary data analysis was carried out to examine the factors and outcomes involving adolescent worker injury on farms. A modified ecological occupational model was used as the theoretical framework. The data set consisted of 692 workers of different ages who sustained injuries while working on farms in year one, and 903 workers in year two. From this sample, 40 young workers, ages 10-19, were injured in year one (n=40), and 22 in year two (n=22). Variables examined included: gender, race, relationship to employer, acreage, farm group, type of farm, type of work, region, time of year, source of injury, event, nature of injury, body part, medical attention, lost workdays, severity of injury, and year. Results were descriptive in nature and a comparison of variables yielded one significant difference between cases in year one and year two for source of injury (p<.02). Implications included the need for occupational health nurses to promote: cooperative education initiatives, interdisciplinary engineering research initiatives, awareness of labor laws and the need for enforcement, and further research and surveillance efforts.
Learning Objectives:
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.