An academic study headed by a University of Alberta researcher suggests that the risk of injury and fatalities among older farmers can be reduced if families recognize key factors that contribute to farm mishaps, such as chronic health problems and the use of prescription drugs.
Donald C. Voaklander, a farm injury expert with the Alberta Centre for Injury Control and Research in Edmonton, says farmers and farm families must take steps to ensure that chronic health issues such as arthritis, heart problems, chronic back pain, limited mobility, impaired hearing, sleep deprivation, depression and asthma are managed properly in aging farmers.
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Families must also recognize that the use of prescription drugs to treat chronic health conditions may increase the risk of farm injuries among older farm workers.
“Farmers and farm families need to work closely with their health care providers to ensure (these isues) do not add excessive risk to older farmers,” said Voaklander, who conducted the academic review along with University of Iowa researcher Michelle Umbarger-Mackey.
In their study, entitled Health, Medication Use and Agricultural Injury, Voaklander and Umbarger-Mackey conducted a search of farm injury literature contained in two major health literature databases.
Their search uncovered 24 incidents where a chronic health problem was a significant contributing factor in a farm injury.
Of the 24 incidents, seven involved prescription drugs or other medications such as sedatives, non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, narcotic pain killers, anti-depressants, heart medications and drugs used to treat stomach ailments.
The researchers further determined that little research has been devoted to examining the relationship between prescription drug use and farm injuries or fatalities.
Voaklander’s research outlined a variety of farming activities that rank agriculture among the most dangerous occupations for elderly workers in North America.
For example, the operation of tractors and other farm equipment requires accurate sensory input, rapid information processing capabilities, reliable judgment and fast responses.
A deterioration of vision, reflexes, reaction times, muscle strength, joint flexibility and cognitive abilities could place elderly farm workers at a greater risk of injury or death.
“Farming as an occupation demands a variety of skills that come under the general label of human sensorimotor performance,” said Voaklander.
“These include skills in vision, hearing, memory and vigilance, as well as the ability to make decisions while performing complex and repetitive tasks.
“Evidence suggests that the use of certain medications is associated with the degradation of these sensorimotor skills and this may especially be true for farmers who are working in mechanized and other potentially high risk situations.”
Voaklander’s study makes specific reference to polypharmacy, or the concurrent use of several medications, a phenomenon that has become more prevalent in adults aged 50 years or older.
According to Voaklander, studies have shown that multiple drug use to treat a wide range of chronic and acute health problems can affect a person’s orientation and co-ordination.
For example, the concurrent use of antidepressants, anticoagulants, non steroidal anti-inflammatories and psychotropic benzodiazenes have been linked to impaired balance, falls and motor vehicle collisions.
Diuretics, potassium supplements and drugs that alter blood pressure and pulse rates can also affect a person’s ability to perform typical farm tasks, thereby increasing the risk of injury or death.
The findings are particularly relevant given the demographic trends that are expected to emerge in the North American farming industry during the next two decades.
In the United States, for example, an estimated 36.8 million people, or 12.4 percent of the total population, were 65 years or older in 2005.
By the year 2030, that number will nearly double to 71.5 million people, according to figures from the U.S. Administration on Aging.
In Canada, similar figures from the 2006 Canadian Census suggest that the proportion of people aged 65 or older will double by 2031, reaching an estimated eight million residents, or 21 percent of the population.
In addition, the seasonal nature of farming and a shortage of experienced farm workers in some areas has resulted in more elderly or retired farmers filling temporary farm position during seeding and harvest seasons.
Further complicating the situation are factors such as improper rehabilitation after a previous injury, a lack of rehabilitation facilities and programs in rural areas, and a tendency among farmers to return to work too quickly after an injury.
