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National Farm Safety and Health Week 2017

National Farm Safety and Health Week 2017

Putting Farm Safety Into Practice
September 17-23, 2017

#FarmSafety #NFSHW

National Farm Safety and Health Week 2017

America’s farmers provide us with an abundant food supply. But farmers are exposed to a unique, sometimes hazardous workplace. Agriculture continues to rank as one of the most dangerous occupations in North America and across the globe.

National Farm Safety and Health Week is September 17-23, 2017. This year’s theme is “Putting Farm Safety into Practice”.

The National Education Center for Agricultural Safety (NECAS), UMASH, and the US Agricultural Centers funded by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) are spotlighting agricultural health and safety with a variety of resources for farm workers, their families, and everyone involved in agriculture.

CONNECT WITH US ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Do you have news to share regarding events during National Farm Safety and Health Week?  Join the conversation on Twitter and Facebook. Be a Farm Safety Champion!

 

How are you advocating for farm safety?

DAILY THEMES

MONDAYTractor Safety (with an emphasis on the ROPS rebate program)
TUESDAYFarmer Health
WEDNESDAYChildren’s Health and Safety
THURSDAYConfined Spaces in Agriculture
FRIDAYRural Roadway Safety

 

AGRISAFE WEBINARS

AgriSafe Network will be conducting daily webinars to inform professionals, as well as Agricultural producers on important agricultural occupational health and safety topics.

Staying Cool In Your Region’s Heat: How to identify, manage and reduce heat illnesses and sun exposure

Monday, September 18
12-1pm CDT

Presenter:
Jessica Wilburn, RN MSN
NC Agromedicine Institute

Summary:
This session will include information on heat exposure, ways to reduce the chances of experiencing heat related illness, sun exposure, safety, and identification of aspects that can be screened as skin cancer. It will also help participants identify if they or someone they are working with is experiencing heat stress, heat exhaustion or heat stroke.

Participants in this program will:

  • Gain knowledge in identifying signs and symptoms of heat stress, heat exhaustion and heat stroke along with treatments that can be provided when identified.
  • Have an increased knowledge of how heat index can be used to help plan and reduce heat stress, heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
  • Gain knowledge on how to identify questionable areas on skin that need to be future evaluated due to skin exposure along with ways to prevent skin damage.

Respiratory Protection and On-Farm Fit Testing for Agricultural Workers

Tuesday, September 19
12-1pm CDT

Presenters:
Anna Meyerhoff & Melissa Horsman
The New York Center for Agricultural Medicine & Health / Northeast Center for Occupational Health and Safety – Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (NYCAMH/NEC)

Summary:
In this webinar, participants will learn about agricultural respiratory hazards and how to select appropriate protection. An overview of medical clearance and fit testing requirements will be given, as well as a discussion of some of the unique challenges faced when providing these services to the agricultural population.

Upon completion of this program, participants will be able to:

  • Identify agricultural workers who may be exposed to hazards that require respiratory protection.
  • Understand the different types of respirators and cartridges and how to select appropriate protection.
  • Describe how fit testing is performed and why it is needed.

Children and Youth: Living, Working and Playing Safely on Farms

Wednesday, September 20
12-1pm CDT

Presenter:
Marsha Salzwedel, MS
National Children’s Center for Rural and Agricultural Safety and Health

Summary:
Farms and ranches are great places to live, work and play, and there are numerous benefits to growing up on them. However, agricultural worksites are among the most dangerous in the U.S., resulting in numerous injuries and fatalities to youth. For working youth, too many of these injuries and deaths are the result of performing work that does not match their abilities. Join us as we discuss “Putting Farm Safety Into Practice,” featuring the newly released Agricultural Youth Work Guidelines, which help parents and supervisors assign age appropriate tasks to youth. We’ll also discuss non-working children and visitors to farms and ranches, and ways to keep them safe.

Addressing the Epidemic of ATV Injuries and Deaths

Thursday, September 21
12-1pm CDT

Presenters:
Aaron Yoder, PhD, and Ellen Duysen, MPH
Central States Center for Agricultural Safety and Health

Summary:
ATVs are used in agriculture as a substitute for pick-up trucks, horses, and just moving about. In 2015, there were 340 deaths and over 97,000 injuries reported involving ATVs that were being used for recreation and work purposes. This webinar will discuss the burden of ATV incidents and provide links to ATV safety training materials that are currently available. Information on ATV safety simulators will be presented. A blueprint will be provided to participants for creating a low-cost, portable, hands-on ATV safety demonstration.

Learning Objectives:

  1. Understand the burden of ATV injuries and fatalities in the agricultural community.
  2. Be able to access up-to-date educational materials on the safe use of ATVs and on proper personal protective equipment.
  3. Understand how ATV simulators can be used as an educational tool to convey safety messages.
  4. Have all the information needed to create a low-cost ATV demonstration.

Prevention Strategies to Reduce Respiratory Exposures and Illnesses in Agriculture

Friday, September 22
12-1pm CDT

Presenter:
Carolyn Sheridan, RN, BSN
AgriSafe Network

Summary:
The goal of the webinar is to inform health care providers of farmers and farming respiratory exposures and diseases that are common in the agricultural environment. The webinar will cover a general overview of respiratory hazards associated with agricultural exposures. Viewers of this webinar will be able to recognize the importance of an agricultural occupational health risk assessment in the treatment and prevention of respiratory disease. “Lungs for Life” agricultural respiratory resources will be discussed and case studies presented to describe the use of prevention strategies to reduce respiratory exposures and reduce lung disease associated with agricultural respiratory exposures.

Upon completion of the presentation, participants will be able to:

  1. Recognize respiratory hazards associated with various agricultural environments that are common in agriculture.
  2. Discuss the use of agricultural occupational health risk assessment to determine agriculture related respiratory risks.
  3. Understand and implement the use of “Lungs for Life” respiratory algorithm to determine appropriate treatment and follow up options for farmer and agricultural workers.
  4. Understand and implement prevention options for respiratory disease in farmers and agricultural workers.

 

Visit us at the University of Minnesota Farmer’s Market

Farmers-Market-smWednesday, September 20
11:00am – 2:00pm
McNamara Alumni Center
200 SE Oak St., Minneapolis, 55455

UMASH will be at the University of Minnesota Farmer’s Market on Wednesday, September 20 from 11am to 2pm to promote National Farm Safety and Health Week. Stop by and say hello!

 

RESOURCES

NFSHW Promotional Materials
UMASH Ag Safety Resources
  • UMASH Farm Safety Checklist
    The UMASH Farm Safety Check is a quick monthly review to identify and fix potential hazards before they cause harm to your family and employees – and your bottom line.  Each month, Farm Safety Check will focus on a different topic, offering checklists and tips to help identify hazards, along with resources to remedy any problems.
  • UMASH Resource Database
    Download agricultural safety and health resources created by UMASH, our pilot project programs, and collaborating institutions
  • UMASH Ag Safety and Health Spotlight
    UMASH Ag Safety and Health: Stories from the Field highlights the stories of farmers and farm families – their experiences with injury or disease on the farm, as well as what they learned and suggestions for prevention.
NIOSH Agricultural Safety and Health Centers
The Centers for Agricultural Disease and Injury Research, Education, and Prevention represent a major NIOSH effort to protect the health and safety of agricultural workers and their families. The Centers were established by cooperative agreement to conduct research, education, and prevention projects to address the nation’s pressing agricultural health and safety problems. Geographically, the Centers are distributed throughout the nation to be responsive to the agricultural health and safety issues unique to the different regions.

US Ag Centers YouTube Channel
The US Agricultural Centers funded by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health offer online safety videos through a special YouTube channel. These safety videos are designed for producers, Extension agents, first responders and farm families. The videos can be especially relevant during harvest season, as farmers are putting in long hours under the stress of weather delays and equipment breakdowns.

National Education Center for Agricultural Safety (NECAS)
The National Education Center for Agricultural Safety (NECAS) is dedicated to preventing illnesses, injuries, and deaths among farmers and ranchers, agricultural and horticultural workers, their families, and their employees. NECAS is a partnership with the National Safety Council and Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC) Peosta campus.