Precision Agriculture

Agricultural

Occupational Medicine

Agricultural Occupational Health & Safety Training

Nationally, there are approximately 900,000 agricultural producers and their families. Additionally, an estimated 1.5 to 3 million are employed in the agriculture, forestry, and fishing occupational sector.

In 1988, "Agriculture at Risk: A Report to the Nation" published by the National Coalition for Agricultural Safety and Health (NCASH) recommended relevant research initiatives about human exposures within North American agricultural worksites. It also described the need for training health and safety professionals – including industrial hygienists, safety specialists, nurses, physicians, EMT's, etc. – in agricultural occupational health and safety.

A 2002 follow-up report found that with the exception of a few training programs scattered across the U.S. there has been little progress nationwide to meeting those training needs.

Introducing the first post-graduate training program

Working in collaboration with the University of Iowa, DPAC has introduced the first agricultural occupational safety and health post-graduate training program within North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, and Wyoming. The University of North Dakota's Center for Rural Health handles the continuing medical certification function.

The occupational training course covers a broad range of occupational exposures commonly encountered within northern high plains agricultural worksites, including:

  • Respiratory exposures
  • Zoonotic exposures
  • Veterinary biological and therapeutic products
  • Crop and livestock protection products
  • General environmental hazards
  • Musculoskeletal and ergonomic exposures
  • Toxicological exposures
  • Skin and sun – UV exposures
  • Injury exposures
  • Cancer
  • Minor farm children and youth who work or play within agricultural worksites
  • Personal protective equipment for agricultural worksites
  • Rehabilitative services for farmers and ranchers
  • Integration of agricultural occupational health care into established public health and rural health care medical settings


Please check back as more projects become available.