Occupational Falls Among Older Workers in Nebraska, 2007–2011

BACKGROUND:  Falls are leading causes of injuries in the workplace, and older workers have been shown to be at a higher risk for experiencing occupational falls. In Nebraska, workers aged ≥55 years represented 23% of the workforce in 2011. Nearly 75% of Nebraskans aged 55–64 years old were in the labor force, which ranked as the highest percent in the U.S. The purpose of this study was to describe occupational falls among older workers in Nebraska.

METHODS:  We extracted hospital discharge records from 2007 to 2011 to study occupational unintentional fall injuries among the Nebraska residents. Occupational fall injury hospital discharges were defined as records with an external cause of injury code for falls (E880–E886 or E888) and a payer code for workers’ compensation. Older workers were defined as individuals aged 55 years or older. Occupational fall discharges were analyzed to study hospital discharges, age group, cause of fall, type of injury, and total charges. 

RESULTS:  Occupational fall injuries resulted in 7,814 hospital discharges from 2007 to 2011, in which 2,365 (30.3%) occurred among individuals age 55 and older. The 5-year average crude rate for occupational fall hospital discharges was highest among workers aged 55–64 years old (248.5/100,000 workers) and 65 years and older (214.0/100,000 workers) when compared to the total discharge rate among all age groups (164.5/100,000 workers). Approximately half of falls among older workers were on the same level from slipping, tripping, or stumbling, and the most common type of injury was fracture. Over the five year period, occupational fall injuries among older workers resulted in $13.1 million in hospital charges, which represented 36.1% of hospital charges due to occupational fall injuries and 10.3% of all charges due to occupational injury discharges. 

CONCLUSIONS:  Our results indicate occupational falls are a leading cause of work-related hospital discharges in Nebraska, especially among older individuals. Occupational falls among older workers were also attributable to a significant share of health care costs. The percent of individuals aged 65 years and older in Nebraska are projected to increase in the 2010 and 2020 decades. As Nebraska’s population ages, workplace falls among older individuals are expected to become an increasingly important occupational health problem. In order to reduce the overall burden of occupational injuries, prevention efforts should prioritize reducing falls among older workers and minimizing common fall hazards in the workplace.