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Abstract
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It has long been established that children on farms are especially vulnerable to major injury. This is true in much of the world (1, 2), including our own country of Canada (3, 4). It is also true of children who grow up as members of farm families who reside on farm and ranch (i.e., large farm) properties (5), as well as children who frequent farms as occasional workers (6) or as visitors to the farm and its related worksites (7). In Canada, there is potential for children to be exposed to a diversity of mechanical, structural, chemical and other physical hazards associated with agricultural production activities (8, 9). Such hazards present risks for major trauma, injury, and disability (1-9). Patterns of injury evolve as children grow, develop and begin to take on essential work roles as part of the farm operation.
In this commentary we reflect on the current state of knowledge about the injury problem on Canadian farms. Our hope is to briefly summarize the current state of epidemiological evidence surrounding the child farm injury problem in Canada using evidence from our ongoing, national surveillance program (9). Building on this foundation, we will present evidence and opinion derived from international research about what works to prevent farm injuries among different groups of children. We will highlight the existence of policies and programs that are available within the Canadian agricultural sector and summarize barriers to the implementation of known effective strategies from the perspectives of health and safety professionals (e.g., Agricultural Safety Program Coordinators, Health and Safety Advisors, Farm Safety Consultants and Educators). who work with the farming community on an ongoing basis.
While agriculture is evolving in Canada with more corporate farms emerging in recent years, most farms continue to operate as family farms ("sole propriertorships" and "partnerships") with a heavy emphasis on the raising of grain and large animal products (10). In terms of injury, nationally representative data on the most serious types of farm injury are available from the Canadian Agricultural Injury Reporting program (11), our national system for the surveillance of injuries related to agriculture. Available data include reports from 1990 to present on fatalities related to agricultural work and settings, including those involving children (Table 1). Trends and patterns within these fatality records are informative. Overall, while annual counts and number of children at risk have declined as the agricultural sector has changed, on a per capita basis the risks to farm children have remained fairly constant over the past three decades (11). The majority of child fatalities are experienced by boys who are residents of farms. Most involve machinery, primarily tractors due to runovers and rollovers, with emergent risks associated with ATV operation (11). Preschool-aged children (11, 12) and young workers (6) are particularly vulnerable, especially when assigned to situations and tasks that they are developmentally incapable of handling (13-15), and with inadequate adult supervision (16). This situation has persisted for generations on Canadian farms, and while much has changed due to advances in work and technology (8), much remains the same...
Language: en |