BACKGROUND: The number of occupational farm-related injuries has been difficult to determine because many injuries occur to farm owners, their family members and others with employment arrangements not covered by the BLS employer based survey. Agriculture has one of the highest work-related fatality rates of all industry sectors. The U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) 2012 Census of Agriculture estimated there were 52,194 farms, 80,304 farm operators and 83,451 hired workers in Michigan. In 2015, Michigan initiated surveillance system of work-related farm injuries in Michigan.
METHODS:
Discharge summaries and ED evaluations from all 136 of Michigan’s hospitals/emergency departments (EDs) with specific ICD-9 (E861.4, E866.5, E950.6) and ICD-10 (V80, Y92.7, W55.1-.4, W30) codes were reviewed to identify work-related farm injuries. Farm workers identified with serious injuries received a letter and a brochure informing them about the Michigan AgrAbility program, which assists farmers to continue to work. Farms where individuals were hospitalized or had an ED visit within six months of identification were potentially referred for an OSHA enforcement inspection.
RESULTS: We identified 678 work-related farm injuries in 2015. There were an additional 16 agricultural fatalities. Eight individuals had two separate agricultural injury incidents. The demographics were: men (72.8%); age range 4-94; Caucasians (90.6%), African-American (1.3%), Other (7.4%), Asian (0.7%); Hispanic ethnicity (29.7%); 9 individuals were identified as migrant workers in the medical records; Workers’ Compensation was the expected payer in 20.4% of the cases for which the insurance information was available; ED visits (87.2%), hospitalizations (10.3%), outpatient visits (2.1%) and other (0.4%); hired-hand (43.2%), owner/operator (42.0%), family member (14.2%), other (0.6%); dairy farm (47.9%), livestock farm (17.8%), other (10.3%), grain (9.2%), vegetable (6.7%), fruit (6.4%), poultry (1.7%); involved the upper extremity (36.5%), other (25.1%), lower extremity (23.7%), back (11.4%), respiratory (1.4%), vision (0.9%), hearing (0.2%); injury source: cattle (33.2%), other (19.4%), fall from height (9.6%), other machine (8.4%), horse (7.5%), tractor (7.1%), fall at ground level (6.1%), livestock (4.3%), tool (3.7%), chemical (0.4%), poultry (0.2%). Information about the Michigan AgrAbility Program was mailed to ten farmers whose injury suggested they would have ongoing serious impairment. MIOSHA has investigated one farm-related injury.
CONCLUSIONS:
In 2015, we identified 678 work-related farm injuries in Michigan and BLS identified 1,000, of which 500 had restricted work. Further work is underway to plan educational activity and set priorities regarding specific types of agricultural injuries and geographic parts of the state to emphasize prevention efforts.