Citation

Marucci-Wellman HR, Leamon TB, Willetts JL, Binh TTT, Diep NB, Wegman DH, Kriebel D. Am. J. Public Health 2011; 101(5): 854-860.

Affiliation

Correspondence should be sent to Helen Marucci-Wellman, Center for Injury Epidemiology, Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety, 71 Frankland Road, Hopkinton, MA 01748. Helen.Wellman@LibertyMutual.com Reprints can be ordered at http://www.ajph.org by clicking the "Reprints/Eprints" link.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2011, American Public Health Association)

DOI

10.2105/AJPH.2010.300019

PMID

21490336

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: We explored the impact on work-related injuries of workers splitting time between industry and agriculture, a common situation in developing countries. METHODS: In 2005, we administered a cross-sectional survey to 2615 households of Xuan Tien, a developing rural community of Vietnam, regarding self-reported injuries and hours worked for 1 year. We defined groups as working in industry, agriculture, or a mix of both. RESULTS: Overlapping employment (part time in agriculture and up to full time in industry) increased the risk of injury in both agricultural and industrial work. This pattern held across all work groups defined by the relative amount of time worked in agriculture. Those working fewer than 500 hours annually in agriculture had an agricultural injury rate (872 per 1000 full-time equivalents) that was more than 4 times higher than the average rate overall (203 per 1000) and the rate for workers employed only in industry (178 per 1000). CONCLUSIONS: Working in agriculture for short durations while working in industry increased the risk of injury substantially in both types of work.

Language: en