Thomas W. Largo, Bureau of Disease Control, Prevention, and Epidemiology, Michigan Department of Community Health, Lansing, Michigan; Kenneth D. Rosenman, Michigan State University, College of Human Medicine, East Lansing, Michigan
An amputation is one of the most serious injuries an employee can sustain and may result in lost time from work and permanent limitations that restrict future activity. A multi-data source system has been shown to identify twice as many acute traumatic fatalities as one relying only on employer reporting. This study demonstrates the value of a multi-data source approach for non-fatal occupational injuries. Data were abstracted from medical records of patients treated for work-related amputations at Michigan hospitals and emergency departments and were linked to workers’ compensation claims data. Safety inspections were conducted by the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration for selected cases. From 2006 through 2012, 4,140 Michigan residents had a work-related amputation. In contrast, the Survey of Occupational Injury and Illness conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) estimated that there were 1,770 cases during this period. During the seven-year period, work-related amputation rates decreased by 26 per cent. The work-related amputation rate for men was more than six times that for women. Industries with the highest work-related amputation rates were wood-product manufacturing and paper manufacturing. Power saws and presses were the leading causes of injury. One hundred and seventy-three safety inspections were conducted as a result of referrals from the system. These inspections identified 1,566 violations and assessed $652,755 in penalties. The system was fairly simple to maintain, identified more than twice as many cases than either BLS or workers’ compensation alone and was useful for initiating inspection of high-risk worksites.
Occ Environ Med, Volume 72, Issue 3, pages 171-176. Correspondence to: Thomas W. Largo, Bureau of Disease Control, Prevention, and Epidemiology, Michigan Department of Community Health, 201 Townsend Street, P.O. Box 30195, Lansing, Michigan, 48909; email: largot@michigan.gov.