Grants and Contracts Details
Description
Farmers aver age 55 make up over one-half of the principal operators of the 2.2 million U.S. farms, with
over 25% of the farms being operated by farmers over age 65. Fatalities to older farmers comprised over half
of all adult farm fatalities between 1992 and 2004. Currently, there are no guidelines for fitness for work of
aging farmers. Although farmers may be well informed about safety practices, knowledge alone is not enough
to change behaviors (Cole, 2002). Strategies for safety that engage the farmer in decision making about
his/her farm work choices and injury risks, that are founded on sound principles, and that include input of
farmers and other professionals, should be developed. This exploratory project is a result of the first
conference on the aging farmer, recent research on work and health of the aging farmer conducted by the Pt,
and recently completed inquiry on aging farmer work guidelines in Canada. The project combines the expertise
of leading researchers to take the first step toward injury prevention interventions that can be used by farmers
and those that interact with them. This project will replicate the consensus-development methodology used to
develop The North American Guidelines for Children's Agricultural Tasks (NAGCAT).
Eight focus groups of farmers over age 55 (n = 40) and their family members (n = 40) in four states will
guide the focus, realism, and applicability of the future interventions. Four meetings with interdisciplinary
professionals (n80) (ag health and safety professionals, gerontologists, cooperative extension, and others)
will provide formats to begin consensus development of the focus of the safety strategies and build capacity for
future work to develop and test work interventions and guidelines.
The long term goal of the project is to develop strategies and products to assist older adults and their
families in selecting appropriate and safe farm jobs that are acceptable to the senior farmers and their families.
The specific aims are to:
1. Identify the top ten hazardous tasks of older farmers.
2. Develop a job hazard analysis matrix that includes the task hazards, minimum ability set, personal
risk factors and action plan for the top ten hazardous tasks.
3. Test the feasibility of developing work guidelines or other injury prevention interventions for these
hazards.
4. Establish sustainable work groups to design and test strategies and interventions identified in the
consensus statement.
Status | Finished |
---|---|
Effective start/end date | 8/1/10 → 7/31/13 |
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