ABSTRACT The agriculture, forestry, and fishing sectors are the cornerstone of industries that produce and market food, fiber, and fuel. Collectively, the three sectors make up a huge component of the U.S. economy and are a major employer in the United States. Annually, these industries generate more than $1 trillion and create exports exceeding $68 billion. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) estimates that more than 5.5 million workers are employed in agriculture, forestry, and fishing. These sectors also consistently rank in the top six most hazardous occupations; fishermen and loggers have the highest fatality rates. Collectively, the three sectors consistently have the highest injury and fatality rates of any U.S. industries, so the overall effect on the safety and health of exposed populations in agricultural, forestry, and fishing worksites is enormous.
In conjunction with planned reviews of up to 15 NIOSH research programs, the National Research Council convened a committee of experts to review the NIOSH Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing Research Program (AFF Program) to evaluate the relevance of its work to improvements in occupational safety and health and the impact of NIOSH research in reducing workplace illnesses and injuries. Relevance was evaluated in terms of the priority of work carried out and its connection to improvements in workplace protection. Impact was evaluated in terms of its contributions to worker safety and health. The committee was also asked to assess the program’s identification
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Summary
ABSTRACT The agriculture, forestry, and fishing sectors are the corner-
stone of industries that produce and market food, fiber, and fuel. Collectively,
the three sectors make up a huge component of the U.S. economy and are
a major employer in the United States. Annually, these industries generate
more than $ trillion and create exports exceeding $68 billion. The National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) estimates that more
than 5.5 million workers are employed in agriculture, forestry, and fishing.
These sectors also consistently rank in the top six most hazardous occupations;
fishermen and loggers have the highest fatality rates. Collectively, the three
sectors consistently have the highest injury and fatality rates of any U.S. in-
dustries, so the overall effect on the safety and health of exposed populations
in agricultural, forestry, and fishing worksites is enormous.
In conjunction with planned reviews of up to 5 NIOSH research pro-
grams, the National Research Council convened a committee of experts to
review the NIOSH Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing Research Program (AFF
Program) to evaluate the relevance of its work to improvements in occupa-
tional safety and health and the impact of NIOSH research in reducing work-
place illnesses and injuries. Relevance was evaluated in terms of the priority
of work carried out and its connection to improvements in workplace protec-
tion. Impact was evaluated in terms of its contributions to worker safety and
health. The committee was also asked to assess the program’s identification
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and targeting of new research areas, to identify emerging research issues, and
to provide advice on ways the program might be strengthened.
Although responsibility for controlling workplace exposure to agricul-
tural, forestry, and fishing safety and health hazards lies with others, the AFF
Program can be expected to contribute to efforts to reduce the effects of these
workplace hazards through its research and information dissemination. Tak-
ing into account several important factors beyond the program’s control, the
committee found that from 990-006 (the period covered by this review),
the AFF Program has made meaningful contributions to improving worker
safety and health in agriculture, forestry, and fishing.
Using a five-point scoring scale (where 5 is highest), the committee con-
verted its assessment of the relevance of AFF Program research into a score of
4 because research has been in high-priority and priority research areas, and
research has resulted in some successful transfer activities. The committee ar-
rived at this score after considerable deliberation: research carried out in some
subprograms was more relevant than in others, and the program has been
somewhat engaged in transfer activities, but not always the most appropri-
ate. Had the committee been given the option of providing non-integer scores,
the score for program relevance most likely would have been between 3 and
4. In addition, there was little evidence that the research activities, outputs,
and intermediate outcomes contributed to the stated end outcomes of reduc-
ing workplace injury and illness. For this reason, the committee assigned the
research program a score of 3 for impact, indicating that research program
activities are ongoing and outputs are produced, which are likely to produce
improvements in worker safety and health.
To enhance the relevance and impact of its work and fulfill its stated mis-
sion of providing national and world leadership to reduce workplace hazards
through a focused program of research and prevention, the AFF Program
should foster effective leadership to create a cohesive program, establish stra-
tegic goals, implement a comprehensive surveillance system that identifies and
tracks worker populations at risk, engage stakeholders for input on research
priorities, develop new approaches for technology and information dissemina-
tion, and incorporate current national developments in its targeting of new
and emerging research areas.
STUDY PROCESS
The committee was charged with reviewing the AFF Program, evaluating the
relevance of its work to improvements in occupational safety and health, and evalu-
ating its impact on reducing workplace illnesses and injuries. As suggested in the
statement of task, the committee’s review was guided by the Framework Document
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(Appendix A) that was developed by the National Academies’ Committee for the
Review of NIOSH Research Programs. The review of the AFF Program was based in
large part on written materials provided by NIOSH (see Appendix C). Information
gathering included presentations by NIOSH staff and other invited guests in open
sessions of committee meetings in January and March (see Appendix B).
To evaluate the research program’s work in its entirety, the committee chose
to evaluate it from its inception in 1990 to the most current timeframe in 2006.
In 1990, Congress directed NIOSH to develop an extensive agricultural safety and
health program in surveillance, research, and intervention to address the high
risks of injuries and illnesses in agricultural workers and their families. The Con-
gressional Agricultural Occupational Safety and Health Initiative applies directly
to activities in agriculture, but timber harvesting and commercial fishing-related
activities are implicitly included.
CHARACTERISTICS OF AN IDEAL AFF RESEARCH PROGRAM
As its first step in evaluating the NIOSH AFF Program, the committee was di-
rected by the Framework Document to independently identify the major program
challenges for an occupational safety and health research program in agriculture,
forestry, and fishing. When considering the ideal research program, the committee
focused its efforts on identifying the following program components that would
comprehensively and effectively address the safety and health issues that face work-
ers in agriculture, forestry, and fishing:
• Identify and engage stakeholders,
• Identify populations at risk,
• Conduct surveillance,
• Conduct health effects research,
• Conduct intervention research,
• Conduct health services research and training,
• Conduct research on knowledge diffusion and technology transfer,
• Inform public policy and provide regulatory assistance,
• Conduct program evaluation initiatives.
The committee used the ideal program as a benchmark to measure the goals and
activities of the existing NIOSH AFF Program.
AFF PROGRAM GOALS
The ideal NIOSH AFF Program would have adequate resources to set priorities
among and accomplish the congressionally stated goals of surveillance, research,
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and intervention through (1) identification and characterization of injuries and ill-
ness and detailed characterization of populations at risk through surveillance; (2)
identification and characterization of special populations and the unique health
and safety risks they face; (3) identification and characterization of health effects
associated with chemical, physical, and biological agents encountered in agricul-
ture, fishing, and forestry; (4) identification, development, evaluation, and imple-
mentation of control systems to reduce injury and illness; and (5) development
of efficient and effective outreach mechanisms for dissemination and delivery of
knowledge developed through research.
ASSESSMENT OF RELEVANCE AND IMPACT
On the basis of information provided by NIOSH and others and its own experi-
ence and expertise, the committee assessed the degree to which the AFF Program
has led and carried out research most relevant to improvements in workplace pro-
tection in agriculture, forestry, and fishing. The Framework Document provides a
scale for rating program relevance and impact (Box S-1). The committee also con-
sidered external factors in scoring for program relevance and program impact.
Resources have been inadequate for the AFF Program to carry out its con-
gressional mandate in the area of agriculture, let alone in the additional areas of
forestry and fishing. In contrast with other NIOSH programs that focus research
on narrow sectors and well-defined problems, the AFF Program has the task of
addressing manifold issues that affect the occupational safety and health of nearly
all natural resource workers on land and sea. NIOSH non-sector based programs
address extremely narrow topics and can focus good science on well-defined prob-
lems, whereas the AFF Program is expected to spread its resources to address broad
issues, so it is difficult to conduct research on all of them. In agriculture, the AFF
Program responded in a reasonably effective manner to the extreme diversity that
characterizes agricultural production in the United States. The extensive sectoral,
technical, and geographic diversity of the agricultural industry left NIOSH with
no alternative but to focus on key subjects.
Despite those enormous challenges, the AFF Program has proved that it is able
to conduct sound research on focused areas when given the opportunity. That is the
case with the Alaska commercial fishing program, which is an exemplary research
program with concentrated research topics, clear goals, and adequate resources.
Work on agricultural risks to respiratory health conducted by AFF Program staff
in collaboration with other researchers has included cutting-edge research that has
moved the field forward. Several factors contributed to these successes: research that
was focused and targeted, use of clear and consistent surveillance methods, involve-
ment of key stakeholders, and motivated core staff to ensure project continuity.
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BOX S-1
Scale for Rating Program Relevance and Impact
Rating of Relevance
5 = Research is in highest-priority subject areas and highly relevant to improvements in
workplace protection; research results in, and NIOSH is engaged in, transfer activities
at a significant level (highest rating).
4 = Research is in high-priority subject area and adequately connected to improvements in
workplace protection; research results in, and NIOSH is engaged in, transfer activities.
3 = Research focuses on lesser priorities and is loosely or only indirectly connected to
workplace protection; NIOSH is not significantly involved in transfer activities.
2 = Research program is not well integrated or well focused on priorities and is not clearly
connected to workplace protection and inadequately connected to transfer activities.
1 = Research is an ad hoc collection of projects, is not integrated into a program, and is not
likely to improve workplace safety or health.
Rating of Impact
5 = Research program has made a major contribution to worker health and safety on the
basis of end outcomes or well-accepted intermediate outcomes.
4 = Research program has made a moderate contribution on the basis of end outcomes
or well-accepted intermediate outcomes; research program generated important new
knowledge and is engaged in transfer activities, but well-accepted intermediate out-
comes or end outcomes have not been documented.
3 = Research program activities or outputs are going on and are likely to produce improve-
ments in worker health and safety (with explanation of why not rated higher).
2 = Research program activities or outputs are going on and may result in new knowledge
or technology, but only limited application is expected.
1 = Research activities and outputs are NOT likely to have any application.
NA = Impact cannot be assessed; program not mature enough.
The NIOSH Centers for Agricultural Disease and Injury Research, Education,
and Prevention (Ag Centers) are an invaluable component of the AFF Program
and have contributed to its successes. The Ag Centers serve as a national resource
for addressing agricultural safety and health problems through research, education,
prevention, and intervention. The regional nature of the centers allows research to
be focused, targeted, and relevant to U.S. worker populations. The centers are based
in university settings, enabling researchers to draw on university resources. Over-
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all, the Ag Centers have methodically carried out and encompassed the necessary
components of an occupational safety and health research program: surveillance,
research in various subject areas, partnerships and collaborations with state and
local stakeholders, and information dissemination. Nearly one-third of the research
conducted by the AFF Program was conducted through the Ag Centers, and the
centers have strategically addressed issues that affect various populations.
Relevance
The committee assigned the AFF Program a score of 4 for relevance because
it found that research has been in high-priority and priority subject areas, and
research has resulted in some successful transfer activities.
The AFF Program has engaged in some high-priority research areas and has
done an adequate job of addressing major problems. A number of relevant, effective,
and important research and intervention pieces have resulted from the program.
As previously mentioned, the work on Alaska commercial fishing has focused
on highly important issues and has had an impact. The Childhood Agricultural
Injury Prevention Initiative is extremely relevant, and some evaluations of the
North American Guidelines for Children’s Agricultural Tasks have shown reduced
injuries when the guidelines were applied. The National Agricultural Tractor Safety
Initiative is another example of a focused research effort that has been extremely
relevant. Research on musculoskeletal disorders that assessed simple and direct
solutions for agricultural worker populations is an important issue that was ad-
dressed and that had a direct impact on workers. The research conducted on
injuries and respiratory diseases is notable, even though efforts were somewhat
disjointed at times. The AFF Program’s current collaboration with other federal
agencies on the Agricultural Health Study is a crucial endeavor that addresses the
effects of environmental, occupational, dietary, and genetic factors on the health
of the agricultural population.
Although the AFF Program has been engaged in some high-priority research, it
has not balanced its research efforts to reflect areas that merit the highest priority.
Forestry work remains one of the deadliest occupations in the United States, but
the AFF Program has yet to demonstrate substantial effort in this area outside of
Alaska and the Southeastern United States. The committee is concerned that the
AFF Program is not in tune with modern agricultural and forestry practices, lacks
the ability to review efforts and know when to move on to other emerging issues,
and consequently NIOSH does not have an accurate grasp of issues most pressing
to agriculture and forestry workers. As seen in information provided to the com-
mittee, the AFF Program has struggled to conduct surveillance to identify subjects
that warrant the highest priority for attention and has not been able to accurately
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define the populations that it serves. It has also struggled to effectively engage
stakeholders to identify current issues and to disseminate its research findings to
practice. Those are important matters that affect the kinds of research conducted;
leaving them unaddressed will severely hinder the AFF Program’s ability to conduct
research relevant to worker safety and health.
The AFF Program is engaged in transfer activities, but it has not been entirely
successful in developing integrated approaches to disseminating research findings so
as to yield additional reductions in injuries and illnesses in the AFF sectors. The AFF
Program does not appear to be as heavily involved in translational research activi-
ties as it should be. Where it is involved, it does not always appear to know how and
to take credit for that involvement. The outreach approaches that do exist tended
to have been developed in other industrial settings and have not been appropriate
or effective in reaching most target AFF populations; industrial settings differ dra-
matically from AFF worksites and workforce, and different approaches are needed
to reach worker populations in the AFF sectors. Many examples of such models
have been used by the Ag Centers and are described in Chapter 8. As previously
mentioned, some projects have been successful in outreach because they first and
foremost successfully engaged stakeholders and target populations and understood
how to translate research results into workplace practices.
The AFF Program has been ill equipped, even among university-based and
clinical researchers, to address cultural and language barriers. Bench scientists can-
not be expected to become instant experts in unfamiliar cultures, foreign languages,
and rural lifestyles or practices. Several first-rate scientists have courageously and
frankly admitted their lack of expertise and experience in community outreach and
have asked for assistance in public conferences that involved the AFF Program.
Impact
The committee concluded that AFF Program activities or outputs are going
on and are likely to produce improvements in worker health and safety, and gave
the AFF Program an impact score of 3. That score was merited by the fact that the
program has made some contributions to worker safety and health, as seen in the
success of projects that have affected children, commercial fishermen, and tractor
operators. But the committee had a difficult time establishing a clear record of
positive impacts because the AFF Program itself has not given much priority to
documenting the impact of its efforts. In some instances, the committee was aware
of impacts that could be attributed to the AFF Program for which the program
itself did not take credit. In other cases, however, it is clear that the contributions
of the program have not been accepted by stakeholders nor has the research pro-
gram engaged sufficiently in transfer activities. The committee concluded that the
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impact of the AFF Program’s research has been hampered by a lack of leadership,
stakeholder buy-in, and effective dissemination of knowledge and practices.
The committee finds that the NIOSH AFF Program has made important contribu-
tions that are likely to produce improvements in worker safety and health. The outputs
of the AFF Program include a wealth of information that is still considered current
and important by the scientific community. However, the information has not
been organized in a manner that is understandable by or helpful to others and has
not been accessible to its own researchers; the AFF Program holds great potential
for impacting workers if it is able to organize information in an accessible, under-
standable, and helpful format. Research has informed public policy and regulatory
initiatives at the federal level and in several states. It is vital that independent,
scientifically based research continue to inform policy and regulatory discourse.
Many in the AFF industries are well aware that safety and health are woven into
the fabric of successful businesses. As illustrated by the tragic loss of life associated
with the recent sinkings of fishing vessels off New Bedford, important gaps still
allow extremely dangerous conditions to continue.
NIOSH has a unique role as the only federal agency capable of convening all
players dedicated to preventing workplace injury and disease, and it has deployed
itself credibly on this task and funded other partners to function in consensus-
building roles. NIOSH-sponsored symposia and workshops have had a great
impact on the work of many occupational safety and health professionals and prob-
ably on the lives of AFF workers, but it is difficult to measure the direct impact of
these indispensable capacity-building activities on worker safety and health.
The AFF Program has made important contributions to occupational health
services and training endeavors across the nation. The committee members them-
selves have benefited from NIOSH-sponsored meetings and symposia, which have
sparked the interest of occupational safety and health practitioners and provided
others with valuable avenues for professional growth that would otherwise not have
been available. It remains vital that NIOSH continue such support because it has
singular influence in convening clinicians, scientists, and training institutions; con-
ducting clinical research that produces occupational training insight; prescribing
appropriate content for occupational training; and providing scientific and clini-
cal evidence that informs practice standards. But there is room for improvement.
For example, there is a need for physicians to become more involved in preparing
training materials and to enroll in training courses. In light of the growing numbers
of schools of public health, there is a need to prepare appropriate education and
training curriculum materials for health professionals.
The AFF Program evidence package and supplemental materials lacked substan-
tial data demonstrating any substantial changes in the annual number of occupational
fatalities or disabling injuries in hired farm workers and several other populations.
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The lack of data may be attributed in part to the failure to conduct surveillance
comprehensively and to poor data management and collection. There was also a
lack of evidence of concerted efforts to address hazards, safety, and health in for-
estry workers and in fishermen outside of Alaska.
Worker populations have not been adequately defined or tracked; therefore
injuries and illnesses and changes in these populations have not been documented.
The AFF Program’s unfamiliarity with standard sources of data on hired farm-
worker employment, including the long-established USDA quarterly Farm Labor,
is an indication of its inability to obtain accurate denominator data for its sepa-
rate populations. The program has not used state-level data and data from other
sources, such as workers’ compensation insurance coverage, that contain a rich
body of information on hired farmworker morbidity and mortality that would
be valuable in informing discussions of changes in rates of occupational injury
or illness.
Key Program Limitations
Although on the whole the AFF Program demonstrated success in addressing
some relevant issues and showed that it had impacted some populations, the com-
mittee identified limitations that affected the program’s progress and effectiveness.
The committee observed several issues that affected both the AFF Program’s ability
to conduct research on issues relevant to AFF workers and its ability to conduct
research that would have an impact on worker safety and health.
Leadership and Strategic Planning
The overarching concern about the AFF Program is the lack of a single cohesive
vision to drive the research agenda. The lack of consistent leadership, long-term
strategic planning, and periodic review of that course has led to a piecemeal ap-
proach to the research program, and the program appears disjointed more often
than not. However, the patchwork approach has produced some successful efforts
because of the efforts of talented and dedicated researchers.
Surveillance
The AFF Program appears to have had considerable difficulty in applying
the principles of and engaging in surveillance. Constraints to successfully imple-
menting comprehensive surveillance may be due to external factors and funding.
Basic demographic and health effects surveillance of each human population at
risk of worksite exposure is essential because without it no effective targeting of
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other programmatic elements can occur, nor can one know when an intervention
has been effective and move on to address other priorities. Surveillance must be
broad-based in its population targets inasmuch as the sector is diverse in settings
and employment practices and places that put populations at risk, such as children,
wives, and the elderly.
Stakeholders
On the basis of the information provided by the AFF Program, remarks pro-
vided by stakeholders, and comments submitted by the public, the committee un-
derstands that the AFF Program has not fully engaged its stakeholders. It has had
some remarkable partnerships to reach stakeholders, such as those with the com-
mercial fishing industry in Alaska, but it has struggled to engage other stakeholders.
The program has met the most success when it has understood stakeholder needs
by asking for direct feedback from farm workers, loggers, and fishermen. It has also
garnered the most credibility when researchers have demonstrated that they are
sensitive to stakeholder needs, which vary greatly among the three sectors.
Without a strong buy-in from its targeted populations, the program may ap-
pear to be out of touch with its stakeholders and unresponsive to the realities of
the workplace environment, and its work may therefore not be credible among
farm workers, loggers, and fishermen. Stakeholders have also at times confused
NIOSH with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA); most
workers are more familiar with OSHA’s role in the workplace than with NIOSH’s
research.
Populations at Risk
The AFF Program targeted specific populations that it deemed at higher risk
than others but omitted certain other populations and fell short in defining the
entire population of AFF workers at risk of injury and illness. There has yet to be a
program-wide endeavor to characterize the numbers and types of workers involved
in agriculture, forestry, and fishing. Some populations, such as hired farm workers,
have also been poorly defined or miscategorized, and others, such as ranchers, have
been largely unaddressed.
IDENTIFYING EMERGING ISSUES AND RESEARCH AREAS
The committee was charged with assessing the program’s targeting of new
research in occupational safety and health most relevant to future improvements
in workplace protection. It was also asked to identify emerging issues important
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for NIOSH and the program. In keeping with the guidance of the Framework
Document, the committee provided suggestions on the basis of the expertise of
individual members rather than as a product of a formal process to explore and
synthesize recommendations that could be developed through a comprehensive
review of the field.
AFF Program’s Identification of New Research Areas and Emerging Issues
The AFF worksite of tomorrow clearly will be different from the worksite of
today, given trends in agriculture that will affect forestry and fishing. The changes,
both predicted and unpredicted, will fuel the need for surveillance of such human
factors as worksite organization and management, climate, technology, and policy
change and of economics. On the basis of information provided by NIOSH, the
committee concludes that the AFF Program has not developed a consistent process
for identifying new research issues and developing a way to address emerging issues.
The success of a public health research program is marked by its ability to recognize
and address the needs of a targeted population. Because the AFF Program on the
whole has struggled to conduct surveillance to understand the current needs of its
worker populations, it is unable to forecast future needs.
In light of the fact that the program lacks an established procedure for assessing
emerging issues in agriculture, forestry, and fishing, the committee furthermore
concludes that the AFF Program has fallen behind in understanding current prac-
tices and how these practices can create new hazards for workers. The program has
instead focused resources on issues that have already been resolved by changes in
work practices and environments. Thus, the AFF Program has not kept up with
emerging issues and has lost the capability to gain useful knowledge and to respond
with appropriate new technologies.
A few projects, however, have more successfully identified emerging issues and
conducted research to address them. The fishing projects in Alaska and the farm-
resident child-injury initiatives, for example, have consistently carried out sound
research practices to affect fishermen and children, respectively, and have been able
to identify new and emerging issues for these populations.
Emerging Research Needs Identified by Evaluation Committee
In evaluating the AFF Program’s research, the committee identified several
kinds of research missing in health effects, health services, intervention, and regu-
latory policies (Chapter 11). Some research issues that have not been investigated
are of great relevance to improvement of AFF worker safety and health and could
substantially affect safety and health with help from NIOSH.
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BOX S-2
Recommendations for Program Improvement
Establish Strategic Goals for Improvement in Administration and Evaluation
Recommendation 1: The AFF Program should establish strategic goals for the overall program and for
separate subpopulations to provide a basis for improving program leadership, administrative oversight,
and program evaluation.
1.a: The AFF Program lacks a concerted effort and should focus its administrative efforts on improving
program leadership, administrative oversight, and program documentation.
1.b: The AFF Program should develop a comprehensive program evaluation mechanism to assess and set
priorities among its research and transfer activities.
Develop a Cohesive Program
Recommendation 2: The AFF Program should provide national leadership and coordination of research
and transfer activities in agricultural, forestry, and fishing safety and health.
Implement a Comprehensive Surveillance System
Recommendation 3: The AFF Program should implement a comprehensive surveillance system.
Identify and Track AFF Populations at Risk
Recommendation 4: The AFF Program should clearly identify and track its target populations.
4.a: A clear definition of worker populations “at risk” is needed.
4.b: The AFF Program should conduct comparative studies across agriculture, forestry, and fishing to
better set priorities and to respond to dynamic workforce and workplace conditions.
Conduct Research on Knowledge Diffusion Processes
Recommendation 5: NIOSH should conduct research on the science of knowledge diffusion to identify
effective methods for AFF research-to-practice programs.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PROGRAM IMPROVEMENT
The AFF Program is the sole federal research program dedicated to enhancing
the safety and health of workers in agriculture, forestry, and fishing. As such, the
AFF Program should be the definitive leader and source of expertise in occupa-
tional safety and health in agriculture, forestry, and fishing. From its evaluation of
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5.a: The AFF Program should incorporate broader social science expertise into the research diffusion
process.
5.b: The AFF Program should explore communication tools capable of reaching the AFF workforce.
Improve Stakeholder Engagement and Partnerships
Recommendation 6: The AFF Program should establish a new model to involve stakeholders throughout
the research process, and should also establish an effective multipartite stakeholder mechanism that in-
cludes at-risk workers and other organizations to focus on occupational safety and health.
6.a: The AFF Program should develop a new model for targeting all key stakeholders as full participants
in its research program design and execution.
6.b: The AFF Program should establish a coordinating council that would serve as a public advisory com-
mittee and would assume lead responsibility for informing public discourse on occupational safety and
health issues.
6.c: The AFF Program should continue to partner with appropriate federal and state agencies and estab-
lish additional interagency partnerships to increase the capacity for carrying out research and transfer
activities.
6.d: The AFF Program should establish public-private partnerships to work more closely with equipment,
facility, and pesticide manufacturers in design and development processes.
Implement Integrative and Interdisciplinary Approaches
Recommendation 7: The AFF Program should implement integrative and interdisciplinary approaches in
its research practices.
7.a: Researchers that receive funding from the AFF Program should visit worksites regularly so that they
can acquire understanding of the workplace environment and thus develop and integrate culturally ap-
propriate and sensitive approaches.
7.b: The AFF Program should increase the use of interdisciplinary teams to address the environmental,
social, cultural, and psychological complexities of issues that face AFF workers.
Enhance Awareness of National Policy
Recommendation 8: The AFF Program staff should develop greater awareness of national policy activities
because they can have a substantial impact on AFF worker populations and risk factors.
the relevance and impact of the program (Chapter 10) and its assessment of new
and emerging research (Chapter 11), the committee identified several potential
opportunities to improve the relevance of the program’s work and strengthen its
impact on reducing injuries and illness in the AFF sectors. The committee’s rec-
ommendations are aimed at improving the program as a whole (summarized in
Box S-2):
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• Establish Strategic Goals for Improvement in Administration and
Evaluation
• Develop a Cohesive Program
• Implement a Comprehensive Surveillance System
• Identify and Track AFF Populations at Risk
• Conduct Research on Knowledge Diffusion Processes
• Improve Stakeholder Engagement and Partnerships
• Implement Integrative and Interdisciplinary Approaches
• Enhance Awareness of National Policy
The AFF Program plays a positive and crucial role in providing information
and tools to promote a safer and healthier work environment in agriculture, for-
estry, and fishing. The committee hopes that its recommendations will help refocus
and redirect program efforts to have a greater impact on the safety and health of
all populations at occupational risk in agriculture, forestry, and fishing.