2016 UMASH ANNUAL FORUM
PROMOTING HEALTH AND WELL-BEING IN THE IMMIGRANT WORKFORCE IN AGRICULTURE
SEPTEMBER 29, 2016
The 2016 UMASH Annual Forum entitled “Promoting Health and Wellbeing in the Immigrant Workforce in Agriculture” was held at the Cargill Building on the University of Minnesota – St. Paul campus on September 29, 2016. The forum was sponsored by the Upper Midwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center (UMASH) and featured keynote presentations from Lillian McDonald, ECHO Founder and Managing Director of TPT/ECHO on “Cross Cultural Communications Best Practices” and Amy Liebman, Director of Environmental and Occupational Health, Migrant Clinicians Network who shared about her research on “Immigrants workers in dairy – Lessons learned from producers and workers to improve health and safety on the farm.” Following the presentations, the speakers were joined by Gerardo Guerrero, Consulado de México, Saint Paul Consulate, and Deb Reinhart, a Wisconsin dairy farmer and Executive Director of the Professional Dairy Producers Foundation, for a panel discussion moderated by UMASH co-director, Jeff Bender.
The forum also included a research poster session and project exhibits showcasing training and educational products produced by UMASH researchers, such as, bilingual dairy working training curriculum, dairy stockmanship training videos and barn posters, needlestick prevention resources, and agritourism training and education resources. Forty-five attendees from diverse backgrounds including healthcare, veterinary medicine, extension, occupational health and safety, research, government, agribusiness, immigrant services and human resources participated in the forum.
View the photo gallery on Flickr.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT THE 2016 FORUM
Eighteen of 43 forum attendees (42%) completed a post-event feedback survey. They told us that they increased their understanding of (a) the unique needs of immigrant workers (100%), (b) ways to improve health and wellbeing in immigrant workers (89%), and (c) barriers to healthcare (77%). Most respondents also said they made new connections at the forum (83%) and indicated they would recommend future forums to others (100%).
- “I appreciated hearing some of the challenges encountered in promoting health and safety.”
- “The presenters, the panel discussion and networking were all valuable.”
- “I appreciated hearing the stories from the farmers and researchers on what life is like for immigrant workers.”
KEYNOTE PRESENTATIONS
Cross-Cultural Communication Best Practices
Lillian McDonald
ECHO Founder and Managing Director of TPT/ECHO
Lillian McDonald served as Executive Director for Emergency and Community Health Outreach (ECHO) since she founded it in 2004. Since ECHO joined Twin Cities PBS (TPT), she continues to lead ECHO as Managing Director. Prior to working with ECHO, she coordinated risks and crisis communication response plans, media relations, internal and public relations work as the Public Information Officer (PIO) for Saint Paul—Ramsey County Public Health. Lillian worked for over 20 years as a news reporter, producer and assignment editor for major market radio and television stations in the Midwest, including KARE-TV and FOX-9.
Watch the video below or on our YouTube page.
Immigrant Workers in Dairy – Lessons Learned from Producers and Workers to Improve Health and Safety on the Farm
Amy Liebman, MPA, MA
Director of Environmental and Occupational Health, Migrant Clinicians Network
Amy K. Liebman, MPA, MA has devoted her career to improving the safety and health of disenfranchised populations. Since 1999, she has served as Director of Environmental and Occupational Health at Migrant Clinicians Network, where she has established nationally recognized initiatives to improve the health and safety of immigrant workers and their families. She is a national leader in addressing occupational and environmental health through the community health worker (CHW) model and is currently testing the CHW model with immigrant dairy workers.
Watch the video below or on our YouTube page.
DISCUSSION PANEL
Jeff Bender, DVM, MS
Co-Director, UMASH; Professor, University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine
Panel Moderator
Jeff Bender, DVM, MS, DACPVM is co-director of the Upper Midwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center (UMASH). Dr. Bender is a Professor in Veterinary Population Medicine at the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine and the School of Public Health. He serves as the Hospital Epidemiologist for the University of Minnesota, Veterinary Medical Center. His areas of research interest include zoonoses and emerging diseases, food safety, antimicrobial resistance, infectious disease surveillance, and infection prevention control.
Lillian McDonald
ECHO Founder and Managing Director of TPT/ECHO
Lillian McDonald served as Executive Director for Emergency and Community Health Outreach (ECHO) since she founded it in 2004. Since ECHO joined Twin Cities PBS (TPT), she continues to lead ECHO as Managing Director. Prior to working with ECHO, she coordinated risks and crisis communication response plans, media relations, internal and public relations work for as the Public Information Officer (PIO) for Saint Paul—Ramsey County Public Health. Lillian worked for over 20 years as a news reporter, producer and assignment editor for major market radio and television stations in the Midwest, including KARE-TV and FOX-9.
Amy Liebman, MPA, MA
Director of Environmental and Occupational Health, Migrant Clinicians Network
Amy K. Liebman, MPA, MA has devoted her career to improving the safety and health of disenfranchised populations. Since 1999, she has served as Director of Environmental and Occupational Health at Migrant Clinicians Network, where she has established nationally recognized initiatives to improve the health and safety of immigrant workers and their families. She is a national leader in addressing occupational and environmental health through the community health worker (CHW) model and is currently testing the CHW model with immigrant dairy workers.
Gerardo Guerrero
Consulado de México, Saint Paul Consulate
Gerardo Guerrero will become the 4th Consul of Mexico in St. Paul. He has worked at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs since 1987 and joined the Diplomatic Corps in 1997. Consul Guerrero has served as attorney in different legal offices within the Ministry, as well as at the Consulate in New York. He became Deputy Legal Counsel of the Ministry in 2012. He studied Law School at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, received a Master degree on international trade legal aspects at ITAM and an LLM on US Law from the University of Houston. He has taught at Universidad Iberoamericana and at the Escuela Libre de Derecho in Mexico City.
Deb Reinhart
Wisconsin dairy farmer; Executive Director, Professional Dairy Producers Foundation
Deb Reinhart and her husband, David Geiser, own and operate a 300-cow dairy in New Holstein, WI. They have operated the century farm since 1975 when they purchased it from David’s parents. Deb has taken an active role in agriculture issues on the local, state and national level, working with stakeholders to affect positive change in agriculture while representing the farmer voice. She is involved in immigration, dairy literacy education, land use, nutrient management and zoning issues and is passionate about educating, training and growing those around her. Deb has provided training on Hispanic culture to courthouse staff, human services and law enforcement. She advocates for training programs for dairy workers, and fostering communication between Hispanic families and their neighbors in the community.
POSTER PRESENTATIONS
- Building partnerships in agricultural health and safety, Upper Midwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center (UMASH)
Alexander BH, Bender J, Keifer MC
- Adapting the Haddon Matrix to Incorporate One Health Approches in Occupational Health and Animal Agriculture
Bruce H. Alexander, Jeff B. Bender, Darby Murphy
- Spheres of influence
Bendixsen C, Barnes KL, Schenk D, Perkins J, Keifer M
- On-the-Farm Screening for Cardiovascular Risk Factors among Migrant Agricultural Workers in Southeast Minnesota
Rajjo T, Rho J, Murad MH
- Worker health and safety of an integrated poultry and cropping system
Greg Schweser, Carlos Figari, and Peter Raynor
- Injuries among swine workers related to needlesticks
Jeff B. Bender, Deirdre Green, Jessica Evanson, Bruce H. Alexander
- Factors Affecting Particle and Gas Concentrations in Swine Production Facilities
Peter C Raynor, Shannon Engelman, Darby Murphy, Gurumurthy Ramachandran, Jeff B. Bender, Bruce H. Alexander
- Injuries among swine workers related to swine-human interactions
Deirdre Green, Jessica Evanson, Jeff B. Bender, Bruce H. Alexander
- A Robotic Reality: Milking the Most out of Life on a Small Dairy Farm and Preparing for the Next Generation
Bryan Weichelt, PhD, MBA, Casper Bendixsen, PhD, and Matthew Keifer, MD, MPH
- Algorithmic Approach to Injured Workers: Designed for Dairy and Pork, Applicable Across Industries
Bryan Weichelt, PhD, MBA, Iris Reyes, MPH, Will Ray, BA, Andrea Mahnke, MS, Laurel Verhagen, BS, Chris Kadolph, BS, Kate L. Thomas, MA, Jeffrey Joyce, MS, Yurany Ninco-Sanchez, RN, BA, Emily Redmond, BS, Shaun Halstead, BS, Matthew Keifer, MD, MPH
- A Culturally Appropriate Health and Safety Intervention for Immigrant Dairy Workers
Amy K Liebman, MPA, MA, Iris Reyes, MPH , Patricia Juárez-Carrillo, MPH, PhD, Yurany Ninco Sanchez, Matthew Keifer, MD, MPH
- Public perceptions of agricultural worker safety results from the ‘what’s behind your food?’ survey
Kampa DM, Ryan AD, Rasmussen R, Alexander BH
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Together we can make a difference.
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