Fatal and non-fatal injuries in the agriculture, forestry, and fishing sectors remain both elevated and poorly documented, compared to other work settings. The proposed project expands on the current Risk Information System for Commercial (RISC) Fishing, to encompass agriculture, forestry, and fishing in the four state (Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington) PNASH region.
We aim to improve understanding of occupational injuries and illnesses to translate those insights into actionable prevention strategies. The project integrates injury surveillance, stakeholder engagement, and communication activities and aims:
1. Analyze occupational injury data for the agriculture, forestry, and fishing sectors in region X to characterize trends in injuries and illnesses, identify sector- and activity-specific risk patterns, and explore disparities across worker populations and employment, and identify opportunities for targeted injury prevention.
2. Engage regional stakeholders through structured focus groups with industry representatives, worker advocates, and state agencies to assess how existing data are used for prevention, identify gaps in available surveillance information, and understand barriers to translating data into safety interventions.
3. Translate surveillance findings into accessible outputs and peer learning opportunities, including development of summaries, policy-relevant briefs, and an online platform that supports regional knowledge exchange and dissemination of safety insights.
These aims align surveillance activities with PNASH prevention and research translation efforts to ensure that injury data inform practical safety improvements across agriculture, forestry, and fishing sectors.
Progress to Date
We have created a data analysis plan, mapped data information sources and workflows, and created a draft dashboard using publicly available data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, NIOSH, OSHA, and DOL. We have also engaged stakeholders through a focus group and personal interviews to understand potential users and audiences within the industry.
Next Steps
We are currently working on the publication of our industry stakeholder feedback on existing data, data visualizations, and how these may identify opportunities for targeted injury prevention solutions.
In development are linked data sets and a reproducible workflow (using a GitHub repository) automating the updates of summaries and visualizations as soon as new data is released.
Partners and Collaborators
- NIOSH Western States Division
- Oregon Sea Grant
- Washington Sea Grant
- Washington State Department of Labor & Industries
Principal Investigator: Elena Austin, Sc.D., University of Washington
NIOSH Funding Period 2022-2027