Citation

Marais S. Inj. Saf. Mon. 2004; 3(1): 2-5.

Affiliation

MRC-Unisa Crime, Violence and Injury Lead Programme.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2004, Medical Research Council of South Africa)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Agricultural employment is among the most hazardous occupations. The most widely recognized hazards of farm work are pesticides and agricultural machinery, but farm workers are also exposed to severe climatic conditions, physical fatigue and stress, parasites and infectious diseases. In South Africa agriculture is one of the major sectors contributing to high fatality rates – in 1994 agriculture contributed 16% of fatal occupational injuries, second only to the transport sector (Jeebhay & Jacobs, 1999). There is a global paucity of data on farm injuries. Some national systems on injuries in the agricultural field exist in high income countries. However, in most of the low-income countries no such systems exist. Hospital data will give some profile of the most severe cases, but injuries not reaching the hospital and the less serious cases, are missed. In fact, what is really needed to prevent occupational (and other) injuries on farms, is detail on the mechanisms of, and reasons for the injury episode. The difficulty and cost of collecting data on an ongoing basis on farms due to large distances is a major reason for the lack of detailed information on farm-related injuries. To improve the work environment on farms and create safer work conditions, it is crucial to have ongoing monitoring of the type, the location and causes of injuries. A complicating factor to the surveillance of injuries on farms is the unique nature of the farm - it is a work environment, while simultaneously being a place of residence and recreation. Ideally both work-related and all other injuries should be documented for purposes of prevention interventions.