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R.T. Williams
NIOSH Education and Information Division
Most
of the damage (86%) caused by the Wisconsin floods of 1993
were experienced by farmers in the state. Yet, while the heavy
rains were devastating, they merely capped off a decade of
stress for Wisconsin farm families " stress triggered by plummeting
land values, low commodity prices, high farm expenses, high
property taxes, stray voltage, droughts and floods. This cumulative
stress has resulted in an average of 637 calls per month to
the WI Farmers Assistance Hotline in 1993 and an average of
nearly 1,000 calls per month so far in 1994. Farmers call
for a variety of reasons, but, increasingly, the hotline is
hearing of serious emotional problems: depression, withdrawal,
alcohol abuse, domestic violence and suicidal intentions.
The
Health and Human Issues Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison
initiated a project to develop a Farm Family Support Network
designed to help farm families deal with flood-related and
other stressors. This project -- funded by the Federal Emergency
Management Agency and administered by the Wisconsin Department
of Health and Social Services -- is addressing the following
goals:
- To
provide training for formal caregivers (health, mental health,
social service, community action, domestic violence, and
JOBS staff) to help them understand the farm crisis and
how they can respond;
- To
provide training for informal gatekeepers (veterinarians,
milk haulers, milk testers, artificial inseminators, farm
credit advisors, creditors and agribusiness persons) to
help them identify farm families in crisis and refer them
for help;
- To
initiate new farm family support groups and revitalize existing
groups by providing trainings for support group leaders
and offering consultation to groups in communities across
the state;
- To
provide direct assistance to farm families through the use
of farm family outreach workers in the two areas of the
state hardest hit by the rains of 1993; and
- To
publicize the Farm Family Support Network in various media
so farm families are more aware of the resources available
to them.
This
seminar will highlight
- the
causes and effects of the farm crisis, and
- the
project components and impacts to date.
Participants
should also become more aware of the culture or world of farm
families "their unique experiences, situations, values, beliefs
and attitudes" and how to more effectively work with people
who share this cultural background.
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and Reproduction Information: Information in NASD does not represent
NIOSH policy. Information included in NASD appears by permission
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NASD Review: 04/2002
This
research abstract was extracted from a portion of the proceedings
of "Agricultural Safety and Health: Detection, Prevention and
Intervention," a conference presented by the Ohio State University
and the Ohio Department of Health, sponsored by the Centers
for Disease Control/National Institute for Occupational Safety
and Health.
The
author noted above is at the University of Wisconsin, Madison,
WI.
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