INJURY AND ILLNESS SURVEILLANCE IN MIGRANT FARMWORKERS

农业是美国和得克萨斯州最危险的行业之一，尽管人们对移民农场工人的受伤和疾病程度知之甚少。 他们就业的特殊情况需要有专门针对性的监测系统，以监测这一高风险人群的伤害和疾病。 本研究的总体目标是建立一个监测系统，估计职业伤害的发生率，患病率的疾病症状和工作场所的危害，并确定这些不利的健康结果在人口的移民农场工人的儿童和他们的家庭居住在南德克萨斯州的危险因素。 这项研究提出，以确定在格兰德河市独立学区（在得克萨斯州南部沿着得克萨斯州-墨西哥边境）通过一个计算机化的系统，旨在跟踪这些学生在美国各地的学校进步（10个州目前参与）的移民农场工人的孩子和他们的家庭。 拟议的研究设计是一项为期两年的队列研究，从基线筛选调查开始，以确定移民意向和健康状况。 将随机选择250个家庭，并要求他们在迁移时保持工作日记（根据随机研究方案）。 在第1年和第2年后返回格兰德河市时，将对母亲进行问卷调查。 调查问卷将征求有关可能预测伤害和疾病的病原体、宿主和环境风险因素的信息（例如，人口统计、工作、社会心理、医疗保健、儿童保育以及伤害和疾病问题）。 还将从这一人群中抽取子样本，以检查协议问题（例如，母亲/孩子和丈夫/妻子之间的反应一致性）。 来自得克萨斯州/墨西哥边境社区和学术界的一个咨询小组将聚集在一起，就相关问题为研究提供咨询，并建立一个联盟，以持续监测社区关注的问题和解决这一人群受伤和其他健康状况的方法。 使用这项研究作为原型的监测实施可能会产生深远的影响，在这个国家的风险和健康结果，以及评估未来的干预措施，访问和监测大部分的移民农场工人的儿童和他们的家庭的能力。

Agriculture is one of the most hazardous industries in the U.S. and in Texas, although little is known about the magnitude of injury and illness in the migrant farmworker population. The unique circumstances of their employment require specially targeted surveillance systems to monitor for injuries and illnesses in this high-risk population. The overall goal of this study is to develop a surveillance system and estimate the incidence rate of occupational injuries, the prevalence of illness symptoms and workplace hazards, and to identify risk factors for these adverse health outcomes in a population of migrant farmworker children and their families residing in South Texas. This study proposes to ascertain migrant farmworker children and their families in Rio Grande City Independent School District (in South Texas along the Texas-Mexico border) through a computerized system designed to track school progress of these students across the U.S. (10 states currently participate). The proposed study design is a two-year cohort study beginning with a screening survey at baseline to ascertain intention to migrate and health status. Two-hundred fifty families will be selected randomly and will be asked to maintain a work diary while migrating (according to a randomized study protocol). A questionnaire will be administered to the mothers upon return to Rio Grande City after Year 1 and Year 2. The questionnaire will solicit information on agent, host, and environment risk factors that may predict injury and illnesses (e.g., demographic, work, psychosocial, medical care, childcare, and injury and illness questions). Subsamples from this population will also be taken to examine agreement issues (e.g., concordance of responses between mother/child and husband/wife). An advisory group from the Texas/Mexico border community and the academic communities will be assembled to advise the study on relevant issues and to build a coalition for ongoing monitoring of community concerns and ways to address injuries and other health conditions in this population. Using this study as a prototype for surveillance implementation could have a profound impact on the ability to access and monitor a large portion of migrant farmworker children and their families in this country for hazards and health outcomes as well as to evaluate future interventions.