Improving rural and agricultural emergency response training

Based on Indiana data, one out of every nine farm families experiences an agricultural-related injury each year. Approximately 60 percent of these require emergency medical treatment due to burns, lacerations, broken bones, concussions, eye injuries, or exposure to toxic materials, In Indiana this amounts to approximately 3,700 cases each year. Appropriate first response skills and knowledge on the part of the first responder, whether it be the farm wife, rural law enforcement personnel, member of a volunteer fire department, or emergency medical unit is critically important to ensure the safety of the first responder and minimize the extent of injury to the victim. There continues to be, however, a lack of adequately trained emergency medical services in rural areas and few farm family members have been trained in even the basics of first aid. Furthermore, less than 15% of Indiana’s rural emergency medical and resource personnel have experience with farm-related operations and hazards which might be confronted in a serious farm accident. This places both the patient and rescuer at potential risk of injury.

During the past 27 years, Purdue’s Agricultural Safety and Health Program has provided formalized training to over 16,000 emergency medical and rescue personnel. Purdue, through an earlier contract with the Indiana Emergency Medical Services Commission, provided training for instructors to conduct agricultural emergency training at the local level. This resulted in a group of over 50 instructors located across the state who were equipped to provide local training. In addition, efforts have been made to promote extensive first aid training to farm families and to assist them in being better prepared to respond to serious injuries. It is estimated that this group of instructors has provided training to over 8000 additional individuals since the program began.

For the past several years, the program has hosted several annual intensive agricultural emergency response workshops for instructors and other emergency response personnel. Topics have ranged from machinery extrication and high rise agricultural rescue to responding to anhydrous ammonia leaks, conducting grain bin rescues and the hazards associated with illegal methamphetamine labs. The “train-the-trainer” approach has greatly multiplied the potential impact of the Purdue program efforts across the state.