Letters

Children and Hazards on Family Farms

I read with interest the article ”Factors Influencing the Exposure of Children to Major Hazards on Family Farms” in the Summer 1997 (Vol. 13, No. 3) issue of The Journal ofRural Health. As one who grew up and spent most of his first 30 years of life on a family dairy and hog farm, I think the people who wrote the article did not know what they were talking about as far as family farms go, and I do not feel that they really had any firsthand knowledge of farms.

article. One of the comments was that childhood agri- cultural injuries are frequent, severe and often pre- ventable. I wish to know how frequently these occur, and what types of injuries they are talking about.

My impression from the article is that family farm- ers are ignorant, and they do not know how to teach their children about the hazards of family farms. Early in life I was taught a healthy respect for animals and machinery on the farm. I was gradually introduced to the operation of the machinery under careful direction from my father. The same can be said for working with livestock; he supervised me well. Additionally, the same can be said for my friends who grew up on neighboring farms. I must say, for all the work around machinery, to which a number of us were exposed, there were very few injuries and not one in nearly 30 years that I would consider serious. Occasionally, somebody would sustain a laceration or a fractured arm, but those were rare and far between.

Judging from the article, I feel that the people who wrote it had no idea of what family farms are like. Had they made some comment as to whether or not they had personal experience growing up on family farms, it would have lent some validity to the article. As for statistics, they can be skewed in any way one wants.

It is interesting to note that children have helped out on family farms since this country was formed more than 200 years ago. I find it ironic that it was per- fectly fine for children 60 to 70 years ago-even 100 years ago-to work on family farms. It was considered part of growing up. Now, we have some so-called edu- cated intellectuals who feel that having kids work on family farms is contrary to child labor laws, as stated in the article. Extrapolating that, does that mean that children who do any type of work around a house in the city also are violating labor laws when they spend an hour or two mowing their family’s lawn or a neigh- bor’s lawn with a power lawn mower?

I disagree with many of the comments made in the

I feel that this was a most biased and ignorant assessment of family farms as well as the dangers and hazards associated with them. I think the money that was spent on this article could have been better spent on other activities or at least on a study that is worthwhile.

Thomas J. Jurek, FNP-C, PA-C Mobridge Family Practice Clinic

Mobridge, South Dakota

Author Response - Thomas Jurek, FNP-C, PAC, raised several points that may be consistent with other individuals who have fond memories and personal experiences with farming and ranching. Among the several million people who reside on family farms, there are many positive experi- ences that contribute to the development of attributes and characteristics that are considered the American ideal-dating back to Thomas Jefferson‘s often-quoted comments about farming in the late 1700’s, which strongly influenced America’s image of farming:

Cultivators of the earth are the most valuable citizens. They are the most vigorous, the most independent, the most virtuous, and they are tied to their country and wedded to its liberty and interests by the most lasting bonds, (Kelsey, 1994). Indeed, it is rewarding to know that Jurek enjoyed

Research on the etiology of childhood agricultural a safe and healthy childhood on a family farm.

injuries is warranted for several reasons. Across the United States, considerable efforts have been undertak- en in recent decades to provide safe environments for children. For example, there is increased use of bicycle helmets and child car seats, as well as modification of youth sports equipment. These advances have signifi- cantly improved the likelihood that young people will not be injured in certain activities. Child safety advocates are working vigorously to promote compa- rable interventions to ensure protective environments for children in other high-risk settings. Agriculture is no exception.

Although it is not possible to determine the exact number of children and adolescents involved in agri- culture as paid or unpaid workers, the best available statistics indicate that each year more than 100 children die and 100,000 children are injured in farming activi-

Winter 1998 Letters 7

ties (Rivara, 1997). These figures are alarming when compared with other industries. In fact, when looking at teen-agers’ work, agriculture accounted for 40 per- cent of work-related deaths between 1992 and 1996, while about only 5 percent of working youths were employed in agriculture (Federal Register, 1997). When looking just at children who live on farms, their annual death rate is eight farm-related deaths per 100,000 pop- ulation (Rivara, 1997). This includes working children and children as bystanders. Children comprise about 20 percent of occupational fatalities on farms. Several other injury statistics were cited in the paper. Regardless of the data source, the figure is substantial- ly higher than what might be found in any other occu- pation. The fact that farming remains one of the three most dangerous occupations in the United States (National Safety Council, 1997) suggests that as long as it remains hazardous for adults, it also will be highly dangerous for young people involved in farmwork.

As reported in the paper, all but 4.5 percent of the farm fathers in this study were high school graduates, and nearly one-half had advanced training beyond high school. The investigators acknowledged that farm parents made decisions based on attitudes and social norms, which a parent must assess in contrast to the perceived risk of injury. This finding is typical of many lifestyle and parenting choices. For example, consider yourself in this situation: Your child has an opportuni- ty to take an enjoyable boat ride with his grandfather, but he does not have access to a child-sized personal flotation device (life vest). What influences your deci- sion to allow your child to go? Data from this study revealed that the risk of farm injury was contrasted with noble values, such as the benefit of gaining work experience.

agricultural injury prevention has recently inspired a number of national activities. In both the public and private sectors, initiatives have been undertaken to use approaches such as education, behavior modification, and engineering design changes to minimize the inci- dence of childhood agricultural injuries. Most notably, in April 1996, a national action plan was released by

Acknowledgment of the significance of childhood

the National Committee for Childhood Agricultural Injury Prevention, and in April 1997, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health announced the implementation of its new campaign, “Health and Safety for Kids on the Farm.” This nation- al initiative has been endorsed and funded through Congress and will involve a number of research activi- ties and educational interventions. Research studies are intended to investigate both positive and negative aspects of children’s work in agriculture and to suggest methods to allow children to enjoy aspects of farming in which their protection is assured.

I regret Jurek thought the journal article offered a biased and ignorant assessment of family farms. The overall purpose of the research study was to enhance the understanding of parents’ decision-making regard- ing children’s roles on farms. Sound research princi- ples were applied to the study design, and data were collected from a representative sample of farm fathers in Wisconsin. As concluded in the study results, the farm fathers emphasized the high value that children’s work has on a family farm. A strong work ethic is a characteristic highly valued in our society. The authors of the paper are hopeful that study results may be used to further this value by guiding efforts to modify envi- ronments so that children may continue to work on farms in safe and appropriate conditions. - References Federal Register. (1997). Department of Health and Human Services.

Announcement 737.62(83), 23463. Kelsey, T. (1994). The agrarian myth and policy responses to farm

safety. American Journal of Public Health, 84(7), 1171. National Safety Council. (1997). Accident facts: 2997 edition (p. 48).

Itasca, Author. Rivara, F. (1997). Fatal and non-fatal farm injuries to children and

adolescents in the United States. 1990-3. Injury Prevention, 3, 190-194.

Barbara Lee, PhD, RN National Farm Medicine Center

Marshfield, Wisconsin

The Iournal of Rural Health 8 Vol. 14, NO. 1