Child Agricultural Injury Prevention Workshop part of world safety conference, June 23-24, Des Moines, IA

April 9, 2019

An interactive workshop focusing on child agricultural injury prevention is scheduled for June 23-24, co-located with the International Society for Agricultural Safety and Health (ISASH) Annual Conference in Des Moines, Iowa.

“We’ll coach workshop participants on how to work with farmers and farm supervisors to protect children who live, work and play on farms and ranches,” said Marsha Salzwedel, M.S., National Children’s Center for Rural and Agricultural Health and Safety. “Our first workshop, held last summer in Wisconsin, included participants from producer groups, insurance, FFA, healthcare, Extension, agribusiness, public health and media.”

The Child Agricultural Injury Prevention (CAIP) Workshop is designed for those who work in or with the agriculture industry, and wish to improve their knowledge and dissemination of child agricultural injury prevention strategies. The early bird deadline is May 22 ($199 registration fee), with registration increasing to $249 after that date. Scholarships are available to assist with the cost of registration. More information, including the registration link, is available at www.marshfieldresearch.org/CAIP-Workshop.

The National Children’s Center, a program of the National Farm Medicine Center, Marshfield Clinic Research Institute, is co-hosting the workshop with Great Plains Center for Agricultural Health, and Central States Center for Agricultural Safety and Health. Co-sponsors are Westfield Insurance, John Deere and the National Farm Medicine Center.

By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:

  • Understand the leading causes of injuries to children who are either working or playing on farms;
  • Describe interventions most likely to be effective in preventing childhood farm injuries; and
  • Identify their (and their organization’s) unique role in helping farm children grow up happy and healthy.

“Protecting our children needs to be a priority,” Salzwedel said. “A youth dies in an agricultural incident about every three days in the United States.”

Participants can also choose to register for the ISASH conference, which officially begins June 24. Go to https://vafb.swoogo.com/ISASH2019. Those who register for both the CAIP Workshop and the ISASH Conference will save $50 on the combined registration fees. Both the workshop and conference will be held at the Embassy Suites Downtown Des Moines.

“Des Moines presents the unique opportunity to participate in the best child ag injury prevention workshop in the U.S., and also attend the world’s largest annual gathering of ag safety and health professionals,” said Scott Heiberger, president-elect, ISASH.

Additional Child Agricultural Injury Prevention Workshops are scheduled for Lexington, Ky., Aug. 6-7; and Hershey, Pa., Sept. 17-18. All workshops are national in scope, but also feature issues of interest to the respective regions.

For more workshop information, email nccrahs@marshfieldresearch.org or call 1-800-662-6900. The National Children’s Center is funded in part by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

CONTACT: Scott Heiberger

heiberger.scott@marshfieldresearch.org

715-389-7541