Marking National Farm Safety and Health Week

An awareness generated right about harvest time for several parts of the country, farm safety and health concerned efforts to address this issue has led to progress yet.

“I first started doing this in the year 2000 and we were averaging 730 fatalities per year, so getting down to 417 is a good stride, but we're never going to get down to 0 during my working lifetime, “said Dan Neenan of the National Education Center for Farm Safety and other farm safety advocates and professionals continue their efforts to reduce injuries and fatalities connected to agriculture.

“The National Children's Center is one of 12 agricultural centers across the nation that create resources,” said Melissa Ploekelman of the National Farm Medicine Center. “We do research, we figure out what's causing injuries, what's causing fatalities, and we give resources back to the farmers.”

“Don't learn safety by accident.”  While that is the theme of this year's National Farm Safety and Health Week, Dan Neenan of the National Education Center for Agricultural Safety notes, the word accident is a misnomer.

"Because accident in most people's mind mean there's nothing that could have been done to prevent it. So, we're trying to get the words across of preventable incident.”

Hence “preventable incident” is also part of the theme in parentheses for farm safety and Health Week. The third week of September, the 2002. Four edition is but the latest in a series of annual observances.

“With one of the longest running presidential proclamation weeks, actually, FDR signed the first one way back in 1944.”

And while “don't learn safety by accident/preventable incident” is the overarching theme of National farm safety and Health Week. This year, each day offers a theme or subject of education.  Monday is equipment rural roadway safety Tuesday is health and Wellness. Wednesday is generations Thursday. Stay as confined space as grain bins, manure pits and Friday is reporting ag injuries.”

So in terms of types of programming offered during the week.

“We partner with the Agri Safe Nurses Network on a series of webinars. There are two webinars per day that are set up throughout the week. We get a lot of calls from co-ops wanting to use the logo. The theme we've got some FFA chapters that borrow some of our props. We always get folks that like to do some training during that week, so we will be out. Bring some. And then rescue some anhydrous ammonia emergency response.” 

More information is available online at NECASAG's Website. Click the link to National Farm safety and Health Week. While the numbers of fatalities recorded in 2020, two 417 is well below the numbers from two decades ago. It is the need to reduce annual farm fatality numbers further that drives safety professionals like Dan Neenan and Scott Heiberger of the National Farm Medicine Center.

“One of the big problems with any public health problem you're facing or public health situation, you need to know where you stand,” Heiberger pointed out.  “You need the data, we call it injury surveillance and it's a real challenge.”

That is what led the national Foreign Medicine Center and partners at the Marshfield Clinic Research Institute almost a decade ago to create an AG Injury News.

“Is trying to help researchers, extension people, journalists, and health specialists help them understand where the problems are so that you can focus interventions,” Heiberger added.  “Resources are limited and you can't tack all problems at the same time. But if you can see where the most injuries are occurring, either geography, age, types of injuries, then you can kind of Marshall your resources more effectively.

That online resource can be found at https://aginjurynews.org/ 

Heiberger's colleague at the National Foreign Medicine Center, Melissa Ploekelman, also contributes her expertise on farm safety education with numerous groups, with a focus on farm safety for children. This includes a collaborative effort by farm safety organizations in place since 1999, the childhood Agricultural safety network.

“The CASN.  That organization is something that anyone who is interested in protecting youth on farms can get involved in. It's a network where we talk about what are the injuries that are happening, what are the trends that we're seeing and then what are we doing to prevent those injuries and fatalities. And we share information with each other.” Ploekelman said. 

She adds anyone can join the network by visiting' CASN's Website.

If you have a story idea for the PNW Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail glenn.vaagen@townsquaremedia.com