Citation

Prado JB, Mulay PR, Kasner EJ, Bojes HK, Calvert GM. J. Agromed. 2017; 22(4): 395-405.

Affiliation

Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies , National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , Cincinnati , OH , USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/1059924X.2017.1353936

PMID

28762882

Abstract

Farmworkers are at high risk of acute occupational pesticide-related illness (AOPI) and AOPI surveillance is vital to preventing these illnesses. Data on such illnesses are collected and analyzed to identify high risk groups, high risk pesticides, and root causes. Interventions to address these risks and root causes include farmworker outreach, education, and regulation. Unfortunately, it is well known that AOPI is under-reported, meaning that the true burden of this condition remains unknown. This paper reviews the barriers to reporting of farmworker AOPI to public health authorities and provides some practical solutions. Information is presented using the social-ecological model spheres of influence. Factors that contribute to farmworker AOPI under-reporting include fear of job loss or deportation, limited English proficiency, limited access to health care, lack of clinician recognition of AOPI, farmworker ineligibility for workers' compensation benefits in many states, insufficient resources to conduct AOPI surveillance, and constraints in coordinating AOPI investigations across state agencies. Solutions to address these barriers include: emphasizing that employers encourage farmworkers to report safety concerns; raising farmworker awareness of federally-qualified health centers and increasing the availability of these clinics; improving environmental toxicology training to health care students and professionals; encouraging government agencies to investigate pesticide complaints and provide easy-to-read reports of investigation findings; fostering public health reporting from electronic medical records, poison control centers, and workers' compensation; expanding and strengthening AOPI state-based surveillance programs; and developing interagency agreements to outline the roles and responsibilities of each state agency involved with pesticide safety.

Language: en

Keywords

Agriculture; farmworker; occupational; pesticides; poisoning; surveillance; under-reporting