Prevention is better than cure for young farmers

14 September 2009

Hunter New England Health will lend its support to an important farming safety information day, the Future Farmers Field Day 2009, this week.

Health staff will be on-hand to provide two injury prevention stations at the field day, to be held at the NSW Department of Primary Industries’ Centre for Sustainable Farming Conference venue in Calala on Wednesday (16 September).

Up to 250 local Year 9 students who are studying agriculture will attend the event, where they will rotate around eight workshops designed to improve their knowledge about risks associated with farming.

HNE Health Audiometrist and Tamworth Farmsafe secretary Kathy Challinor, who will be running the rural noise injury prevention station, said agriculture now has the highest death and injury rate in Australia.

“The field day is a major annual event; it provides young farmers of the future the knowledge to reduce their risk of injury and death on the farm,” Ms Challinor said.

Along with the rural noise injury prevention station, HNE Health will provide a safe manual handling workshop that will be stationed by a physiotherapist.

Students will start the day with an address from local farmer Mr Bob Chaffey who was involved in a farming accident some years ago before moving around the workshop stations.

“This year students will receive a booklet that has all the information they received from the field day, which they can take home to their farms to share with their parents,” Ms Challinor said.

For further details on the day contact Kathy Challinor Clinical Nurse Consultant Audiometrist on 6767 8155 or 0428 667 502.

Contact: Emma Gibbs

Phone: (02)6767 7137 or 0428 114 767