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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Paul Monaghan, PhD, Florida Prevention Research Center, University of South Florida, 13201 Bruce B. Downs Blvd, MDC 56, Tampa, FL 33612, 813-494-1765, paulmonaghan@alltel.net and Linda Forst, MD, PhD, School of Public Health, University of Illinois, 901 S. Wolcott M/C 684, Chicago, IL 60612.

The Community Health Worker (CHW) model has often been used to incorporate local knowledge to address health priorities and treatment issues among underserved communities. The model has been rarely used in the workplace. The model is more than an educational or outreach method; for hard to reach populations such as migrant farm workers, it empowers individuals in the community to gain control over prevention and safety. In southwest Florida, a coalition of citrus companies, university researchers and workers called The Partnership for Citrus Worker Health (PCWH) has used “promotores de salud” (CHWs) for three harvest seasons in an effort to reduce eye injuries common among citrus pickers. This paper describes the results of a multi-faceted approach to promoting safety among an underserved and little researched population. It includes an ethnographic study of migrant and seasonal farm workers (MSFWs) using a community-based intervention, the adaptation of an existing CHW program for eye safety, and a survey of participating workers who tried wearing protective eyewear in the citrus groves for the first time. The four main categories affecting use of safety eyewear include the physical environment, job tasks, the social environment and medical or ethno-medical issues. All of these categories can be addressed by using workers themselves to provide safety information, distribute protective eyewear and provide minor first aid. We conclude that the CHW model can be successfully implemented in large agribusiness citrus groves and that it can increase the use of protective eyewear among MSFWs

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of the presentation, the participant will
• Understand the difficulties of improving safety among farm workers
• Be able to evaluate a new approach using the skills and experience of workers themselves

Keywords: Community Health Advisor, Agricultural Work Safety

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation