UMASH Co-Director, Jeff Bender was a presenter on a November 28, 2018 webinar hosted by the National Pork Board and the National Hog Farmer. The webinar’s purpose was to advise hog producers about proper needle usage and worker safety with administration techniques. He was joined by Karen Hoare, Director of Producer Learning and Development at the National Pork Board and Dr. Scanlon Daniels, DVM from Circle H Headquarters, LLC.
Dr. Bender presented research on worker safety and needlestick injuries in swine settings. He pointed out, “There are really limited number of documented cases in the literature, but some of these can be serious and there is a real need for us to be aware of the issue and take precautions.” Needlestick injury research shows that over 80% of farm workers and 73% of swine veterinarians working in animal agriculture have accidentally stuck themselves in the previous year.
Nearly 300 people joined the webinar which was recorded for future use. The archived webinar is free but will require completing the registration form to access the recording. The duration is just under one hour (53 minutes).
Needlestick Prevention
Implementing a comprehensive needlestick prevention program on farm is crucial and should include guidelines for both employees and management.
These recommendations can be found on the UMASH Needlestick Prevention web page. This page includes fact sheets, barn posters and videos available in both English and Spanish.