Biomedical subjects

Tim Struttmann

Publications and source records attributed to Tim Struttmann.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

Farm injuries in Arkansas 1990-2000.

Despite the shortcomings of a newspaper injury surveillance system to capture agricultural injury data, there is merit to reviewing the types of injuries occurring on Arkansas farms. Over an 11-year period, 482 cases of injuries were identified by a newspaper clipping service and entered into a database. These cases exclude injuries on ATVs. A total of 46% of the cases were fatal. Prevention starts with knowing what the hazards are and taking some action to prevent injury. This paper describes the injuries over an 11-year period and concludes with short prevention messages.

Accident Prevention↗

PubMed2004

Overcoming recruitment challenges in construction safety intervention research.

BACKGROUND: Recruiting workers in small construction companies and securing their participation in voluntary safety programs or safety research poses unique challenges. Worker turnover and worksite changes contribute to difficulties in locating and enrolling participants. Economic pressures and time demands potentially threaten ongoing participation. METHODS: Six simulation exercises designed to reduce back and fall injuries in small construction companies were developed based on data from focus groups of workers and company owners. Working with a workers' compensation insurer, we had access to owner-operators of general, heavy, and special trade construction companies reporting less than $10,000 in payroll expenses. Recruitment methods included a participation incentive, mailed invitations followed by phone contacts, and follow-up reminders. RESULTS: Despite using recruitment methods recommended in the literature, participation rates were low over a 2-year intervention period. Because of these difficulties, factors affecting participation or nonparticipation became an additional research focus. Owners' perceptions of already having a good safety record and of the time demands of participation were the most commonly cited reasons for not participating. CONCLUSIONS: Literature on recruitment emphasizes processes and procedures under investigator control rather than understanding potential participants' judgments about the adequacy of their existing practices and the potential benefits of intervention participation relative to potential time and productivity trade-offs. Greater attention to such judgments may enhance recruitment and participation in under-studied and difficult to access populations.

Accidental Falls↗

PubMed2002

Carbon monoxide poisoning in Kentucky.

Fatal and nonfatal cases of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning continue to be widespread. Hospital discharge data were used to identify cases of CO poisoning in Kentucky during 1998-1999. Additional data collection was conducted through medical record abstraction. Information was collected on 205 cases at 33 Kentucky hospitals. Over half of the CO poisoning cases occurred in residential settings. The most common types of equipment operating at the time of exposure were motor vehicles and gas heating sources. Eighteen percent of the cases required hospitalization. Almost half of the incidents occurred during December, January, and February. Incidents of CO poisoning can be reduced through education and implementation of appropriate prevention strategies. Public health professionals and health care professionals should provide education about the sources of CO and the hazards of exposure. Recommendations for prevention are provided.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Assessing recalibration as a response-shift phenomenon.

BACKGROUND: Traditionally, the difference between pretest and posttest scores is used as an estimate of change. This can be problematic when repeated self-report measures are used to assess change resulting from interventions intended to change beliefs, behaviors, attitudes, or values about health or safety. If the intervention is effective, participants may apply more stringent criteria in response to a posttest questionnaire than they did at the pretest. This kind of change has been termed a recalibration response shift. OBJECTIVES: To present scale recalibration as a measurable response shift, and to illustrate a method that can be used to estimate its magnitude and direction: the retrospective pretest. METHODS: In a quasi-experimental study investigating the effectiveness in small construction companies of narrative simulation exercises targeting back and fall injuries, a retrospective pretest was administered concurrently with a delayed posttest 4 months after the simulation exercises. RESULTS: : In the first intervention year, the results from a brief (two-item) retrospective pretest pertaining to safety climate were consistent with a recalibration response shift in the intervention group, but not in the control group. In the second intervention year, when all 10 items of the safety climate questionnaire were used for the retrospective pretest, no evidence of recalibration was found. CONCLUSIONS: Although the evidence of recalibration was equivocal, the findings illustrate circumstances in which recalibration response shifts may occur and characteristic patterns of findings may suggest that recalibration has or has not occurred.

Back Injuries↗