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From the Horse Worker’s Mouth: A Detailed Account of Injuries Experienced by Latino Horse Workers

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Abstract

Horse breeding farms are hazardous. Yet, little is known about the injuries of Latino horse workers. This study assesses Latino horse workers’ injury prevalence, describes their injuries, and analyzes differences between injuries receiving medical versus those receiving first aid care. Data were gathered from 225 Latino thoroughbred workers via a community-based purposive sampling strategy. Questions included injury experiences in the past year and details about each person’s two most severe injuries. Univariate and bivariate analyses were conducted. Nearly half of workers experienced an injury in the past year, often involving a horse. Bruises and sprains/strains were most common, as were injuries to upper/lower appendages. Head/face injuries more often resulted in medical care. The injury burden in this Latino worker population is high. Personal protective equipment (PPE) and training is advised due to the high prevalence of horse-related injuries. Future research should investigate aspects of the work environment that may influence injury risk.

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Notes

  1. BLS data defines an injury as an event meeting one of the following criteria: medical treatment beyond first aid, loss of consciousness, days away from work, or restricted work activity or job transfer.

  2. The industry council is comprised of representatives and key stakeholders from organizations that serve the thoroughbred industry, including the region’s Thoroughbred Association and Farm Managers’ Club, an organization that provides services to thoroughbred farm, as well as farm owners, workers, and human resource personnel.

  3. Due to skip patterns, not all participants may have completed all questions.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the farmworkers that took the time to participate in this study and the four Promotoras that diligently collected data from them. We also thank the industry and the community advisory council members that guided this work. The work presented in this paper was supported by the CDC/NIOSH Cooperative Agreement 5U54OH007547-14. The contents of this article are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of CDC/NIOSH.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Maryland School of Social Work, 525 West Redwood Rd, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA

    Jennifer E. Swanberg

  2. College of Public Health, University of Kentucky, 151 Washington Ave, 346 Bowman Hall, Lexington, KY, 40506, USA

    Jessica Miller Clouser, Ashley Bush & Susan Westneat

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  1. Jennifer E. Swanberg
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  2. Jessica Miller Clouser
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  3. Ashley Bush
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  4. Susan Westneat
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Correspondence to Jessica Miller Clouser.

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Swanberg, J.E., Clouser, J.M., Bush, A. et al. From the Horse Worker’s Mouth: A Detailed Account of Injuries Experienced by Latino Horse Workers. J Immigrant Minority Health 18, 513–521 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-015-0302-1

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