Highlights: Ag Centers

At a glance

Key accomplishments from the 11 Centers for Agricultural Safety and Health (Ag Centers) in fiscal year 2020. They collaborated on outreach and communications for National Farm Safety and Health Week and the Telling the Story project. They continued to support a national model of agricultural safety and health education, as well as reduce tractor rollovers. Ag Centers collaboratively ran a YouTube channel and expanded their program evaluation skills.

Agricultural workers in strawberry fields

Introduction

The NIOSH-supported Centers for Agricultural Safety and Health (Ag Centers) have a long history of cross-center collaboration. Partnerships among the centers have created a strong, nationwide network of 11 academic and medical research institutions. Collectively and individually, they are devoted to addressing morbidity and mortality among agriculture, forestry, and fishing (AFF) workers and their families.

This network is driven and maintained by a large group of interconnected researchers, communicators, educators, evaluators, and other contributors. Many of these individuals train and work at other institutions in the network outside of their own. The camaraderie created strengthens their collective approach and impact while improving the lives of people working in AFF.

Additionally, many of the collaborations and connections between the Ag Centers develop through their outreach efforts. The Centers have numerous long-standing collaborative initiatives. Evaluation, coordination, and outreach staff at the centers network through regular meetings. They support each other in various aspects of their center's outreach activities.

These connections improve efficiency and create synergies in areas where centers are working on the same topic or with similar populations. For example, fact sheets created by one center may be used by others. Centers also may the coordinate and shar multilingual materials and educational campaigns.

Next are examples about how the Ag Centers work together to respond to particular workforce needs. You can find this information and more in NIOSH Extramural Research and Training Program: Annual Report of Fiscal Year 2020.

Using YouTube for widespread reach

In 2013, the Ag Centers partnered to start a YouTube channel. Videos posted help raise awareness of hazards and provide information to prevent injuries and illnesses in AFF. The videos are available in multiple languages including English, Spanish, and K'iche. Through YouTube, the centers also aim to increase their visibility and sphere of influence. They want to create a model of collaborative work that can be used by other organizations.

The centers set up policies, procedures, and a standard review process for videos to ensure high scientific standards. They have a joint marketing plan to promote the channel to

  • Agricultural cooperative extension agents
  • Educators
  • Producers, owners, and operators
  • First responders
  • Families
  • Community organizations.

The centers disseminate this information through email, social media, conference presentations, and outreach exhibits. Centers posted 167 videos to their YouTube Channel in 2013 through 2020. People watched the videos 426,764 times from 2013 through 2020. The videos with the most views are on safe use of chain saws and grain bin safety. In FY 2020, people viewed the videos 108,050 times. You can find more information on this project at the links below.

Details:

Rollover protective structures

Tractor overturns, a long-standing concern in agriculture, are the leading cause of farm-related fatalities. Rollover protective structures, or ROPS, which became standard tractor equipment in 1985, help prevent injuries from tractor overturns. However, many tractors made before that time are still in use.

The Ag Centers proposed the National Agricultural Tractor Safety Initiative in 2004, a broad plan of action to bolster ROPS efforts. Since this time, the centers have worked individually on specific research or technical ROPS issues. Simultaneously, they have also cooperated and supported each other collectively on varied ROPS-related projects including education and outreach.

Notably, the Northeast Center for Occupational Health and Safety created a successful ROPS Rebate Program in New York State. It addresses barriers that farmers face related to retrofitting or adding ROPS on tractors. The program relies on state funding to provide incentives. One incentive is a rebate of approximately 70% of the cost to retrofit a tractor.

A cost-inclusive evaluation of the program analyzed data for New York State farm workers from 2007 through 2017 had positive findings. ROPS saved more than $4 million in prevented deaths and injuries.

In 2017, the Northeast Center started building on National Tractor Safety Coalition efforts to launch a National ROPS Rebate Program. The center collaborates with Coalition partners to address manufacturing design and supply concerns related to ROPS. They also work together to increase interest among agricultural partners related to expanding the National ROPS Rebate Program.

To support this effort, Northeast Center researchers studied how agricultural groups perceive the expansion of the ROPS Rebate Program. It also examined the use of media as an implementation strategy for agricultural safety. Findings showed the importance of using media before, during, and after implementation of a ROPS program to get and sustain support. Scientists also received a NIOSH research grant in FY 2020 to implement the findings in three high-risk states—Kansas, Iowa, and Missouri.

Details:

National Farm Safety and Health Week

In 1944, the National Safety Council began recognizing National Farm Safety and Health Week (NFSHW). During this third week in September, the goal is to widely promote messages and resources on farm safety and health topics. Each day of the week has a different theme, and the weekly theme changes annually. Because agriculture ranks among the most hazardous industries, NFSHW continues to remain relevant in the AFF sector.

Since 2014, the Ag Centers have collaborated on an annual NFSHW campaign. They partner each year to create and disseminate a campaign communication toolkit that includes resources aligned with the NFSHW daily themes. The materials amplify useful communication tools, like the National YouTube Channel. The toolkit also highlights best practices, offers guidance, and provides other critical information related to agricultural safety and health. Toolkit users are encouraged to share messages across social media, websites, and print and broadcast media.

NFSHW 2020 featured the overall theme of Every Farmer Counts. Ag Centers shared their toolkit resources, which fit with each daily theme during the week, via social media channels.

Nine of 11 centers shared Twitter and Facebook (FB) metrics. People viewed their FB posts more than 11,000 times. More than 1,500 FB users engaged with these posts by either liking, sharing, or commenting on them. Centers estimate that all Twitter posts combined reached more than 12,000 users.

Details: Upper Midwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center – National Farm Safety and Health Week 2020

Telling the Story

"We don't want this to happen to anyone else" is the basic message of the Telling the Story Project. It uses personal stories and first-hand experiences to reach at-risk populations in the agricultural industry. This project is based on research on storytelling from public health, psychology, sociology, and organizational development.

In the Telling the Story Project, farmers, and other agricultural workers, along with their families and community members, describe real events. Featured individuals use their own words to share how they have been impacted by injuries, fatalities, and close calls. Their narratives provide valuable information to help prevent others from having similar incidents in the future.

The Telling the Story Project started in 2016. It is a collaborative outreach and educational campaign among four centers in the Midwest:

  • Central States Center for Agricultural Safety and Health,
  • Great Plains Center for Agricultural Health,
  • Upper Midwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center, and
  • National Farm Medicine Center.

The Telling the Story website had over 18,000 views in 2020. It highlights personal narratives, along with videos, educational resources, and safety vignettes. The website also has study or discussion guides related to safety and health in AFF. These guides have been downloaded more than 300 times since their creation in 2018. Multiple news outlets in the agricultural industry have featured stories from the Telling the Story Project.

Details:

National model of agricultural safety and health education

In 1987, the Agricultural Health and Safety Course started at the University of Iowa (UI) College of Public Health. Originally focused on medical professionals, the course expanded to include safety professionals and others working with agricultural communities. This educational program focuses on key health and safety issues for rural and agricultural workers. It includes presentations relevant to those working in occupational safety and health, health care, public health, and education.

In 2007, the NIOSH-funded Great Plains Center for Agricultural Health (GPCAH) at UI started disseminating the course nationally and internationally. GPCAH later partnered with two other Ag Centers on the project. The first is the Central States Center for Agricultural Safety and Health and the second is Southwest Center for Agricultural Health, Injury Prevention, and Education.

Other organizations across the United States have also adopted the course. A consensus process with national and international experts guides the development and continuous revisions of the content for this week-long course. The course focuses on prevention and the hierarchy of controls for occupational hazards. It includes live lectures, small-group discussions, online modules, podcasts, case studies, homework assignments, and interactive exercises. Individuals completing the course can receive academic credit, continuing education, and a certificate of completion.

Since 2011, 1,391 trainees from the United States and Australia participated in 39 courses. In FY 2020, the course occurred five times, and a total of 285 people participated.

A survey completed by course participants six months later had positive findings. It showed 80% of them believed their ability to anticipate, diagnose, treat, or prevent agricultural injuries and illnesses improved. Almost 90% indicated the course information helped them address occupational hazards. About 70% felt confident when recommending personal protective equipment for the farming population.

GPCAH also created separate online education from the Agricultural Health and Safety Course that includes some of its course topics. These online modules are freely available and offer a certificate of completion. The Agricultural Health and Safety Course has become a national model of effective agricultural safety and health education.

Details:

Building evaluation capacity

In FY 2020, the Ag Centers collaborated with NIOSH to start building evaluation capacity across the AFF Program. NIOSH developed an Evaluation Capacity-Building Plan (2021–2025) outlining institute evaluation needs and steps to address those needs over a five-year period.

As a part of the plan, NIOSH staff collaborated with Ag Centers to develop a shared understanding evaluation. Centers can then apply this view of evaluation concepts, definitions, and framework to programs and research projects. They discussed definitions for common evaluative terms such as outputs, intermediate outcomes, and end outcomes. NIOSH also introduced the framework that it uses to guide its program reviews.

Having a shared understanding has allowed the Centers to work together with NIOSH to develop shared logic models. These describe common AFF health and safety topics such as heat-related illness and rollover protective equipment. These models will enable Ag Centers and NIOSH AFF Program leaders to

  • Assess the progress made to date,
  • Identify gaps that may still exist, and
  • Make informed decisions about the future direction of the program.
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Content Source:
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health