NASD: The Kentucky Community Partners for Healthy Farming ROPS Project: Index of Materials

INDEX - Table 1: Index of Materials and Activities

(Use this table to locate items of interest. Then look for the item’s name in the “Description of Materials and Activities” section starting on page 18. To go directly to the item, look for its abbreviated section and item name among the notebook tabs. Item names in bold capital letters have tabs printed in red. These are the key sections of the notebook necessary to locate and use specific activities.)

Item Name	Abbrev.	Content	Format	Length/Size	Audience /Use	Time Needed
Resource Materials	Resour	Instructions about how to use the notebook materials	Text	Half page	Instructor, leaders	2 min
Focus and Purpose	Focus	One-page chart that lists the problem addressed, project goals and rationale, and types of activities and materials	Chart with graphics and text	One page	Instructors, leaders, & community members	1 min
Introduction	Intro	Describes purpose and origin of the notebook materials	Text	Half page	Instructors, leaders	2 min
QUICK START -Locating and Using the Materials	QUICK	Instructions for the rapid location and use of activities and materials	Text	Two pages	Instructors, leaders	2 - 3 min
INDEX - Table 1: Index of Materials and Activities	INDEX	Briefly lists and describes the materials and activities in the order in which they appear in the notebook	Text in a tabular format	Four pages	Instructors, leaders	5-10 min
DESCRIBE -Descriptions of Activities and Materials	DESCRIBE	Half-page description of each activity's content, objectives, intended audience and use	Text	Half page per activity	Instructors, leaders	2 min per activity
1. GOALS - Focus, Goals, and Materials	GOALS	One-page description of the problem, project goals, and materials	Text and graphics, in large type	Chart version = 1 page. Landscaped version = 3 pages.	Community displays and presentations	1 to 3 min
2. WTP - What's the Problem?	WTP	Facts about Kentucky farm tractor overturns deaths and their prevention	Presentation charts (select pages as needed)	Tips plus 30 one-page charts	Community presentations	5 to 25 min depending on no. selected
3. MASS COM -Mass Communication Messages	MASS COM	A major section of the notebook consisting of the six sets of materials and activities listed below	Brief text and graphic messages	Six major categories of activities and materials	Mass distribution within communities
PSAs - Public Service Announcements	PSAs	Facts and short stories about tractor overturns and the effectiveness of ROPS	30-second radio PSAs and/or printed statements	100 PSAs organized in 15 categories	Local radio stations, local newspapers and newsletters	30 seconds per PSA
MBCS - Mailing, Billing, and Check Stuffers	MBCS	Short text and graphic messages about tractor overturns, ROPS and seat belts	Envelope stuffers, countertop handouts	15, 8.5 x 3.8 inch slips with one message per slip	Mass distribution to people in the community	1 min per stuffer message
PDP - Posters for Public Display	PPD	Facts about overturns, risks, injuries and the value of ROPS	8.5 x 11 inch charts for display	26 pages	Community displays	1 to 2 min per poster
HGR - How to Get a ROPS and Seat Belt on Your Tractor	HGR	Detailed but simple instructions for getting a ROPS and seat belt for a tractor (Local equipment dealers addresses and telephone numbers must be added)	two pages printed on 11 x 14 inch paper folds to 8-panel flyer	8-panel pocket flyer with graphic, text, checklist, and local dealer names and phone nos.	Community-wide distribution by multiple agencies, businesses, and employers	3 to 5 min to examine flyer
NEWS - News Articles	NEWS	A series of 21 articles about farmers, tractor overturns, and ROPS	Newspaper and magazine articles	26 half-page to one-page articles about real events	Readers of local newspapers and newsletters	5 to 10 min per each article
DMCM - How to Develop Effective Mass Communication Messages	DMCM	A short article that provides practical tips for designing effective mass communication messages	Text	Two-and one-half pages	Instructors, community leaders who wish to develop short messages	5 to 10 min
4. ACT - Activities for Farm Community Meetings	ACT	A major section of the notebook consisting of the nine hands-on and discussion activities listed below	Demonstrations, text, graphics, and group participation	Nine sets of participatory activities and demonstrations	Designed for use at meetings, group activities, and in classrooms	5 to 20 minutes per activity
SKITS - Skits About Tractors and ROPS	SKITS	Skits about tractor overturns based on real conversations about real events	Pre-scripted roll- play activity	Eight one-page skit scripts	Community meeting activity	3 to 5 min per skit
MGE - Mr. Good Egg Farmer Model Tractor Overturn Activity	MGE	Simulating tractor overturn injuries using scale model tractors and raw hens' eggs	Demonstration of overturn injuries and value of ROPS	One main demonstration activity, 12 related short activities	Farm community meetings, youth and adults groups, 4H, FFA, classrooms	15 to 25 min
MEO - My Experience with Tractor Overturns and My Story Activity	MEO	Census and tally of group members' tractor overturn experiences. Participants are encouraged to tell and/or write their stories.	One-page checklist about participants' experience with tractor overturns	One-page form on paper and overhead projector transparency	Farm community meeting, youth and adult groups, classrooms	10 to 15 min
CAT - Can All Tractors Be Fitted with ROPS?	CAT	A three-part activity that allows the user to examine fatality reports for overturns and determine if ROPS were available for those tractors, and for tractors the individual's family may own or operate	Paper worksheet, Internet assignment with websites listed, and summary reports	Nine pages of information, fatality cases, forms, and website addresses	Farm youth and adults who have access to a PC, middle and high school students	20 to 60 minutes
POF - Photos of Fatal and Non-Fatal Tractor Overturns	POF	Photos of overturned tractors some without ROPS (operator killed), some with ROPS (operator not injured)	8 x 10-inch color photos with brief factual text that describes the overturns	Ten color photos plus a few questions and brief incident reports	Farm adult and youth hands-on community meeting activity or display, classroom activity	10 to 15 min
HMR - Homemade ROPS - Should You Make Your Own?	HMR	Reasons why farmers install homemade ROPS on tractors and the potential injury and liability issues involved in doing so	Informative memo, facts, questions, and color flyer	five pages	Presentations and discussion at community meetings, and classrooms. Also good for community wide distribution	10 to 15 min
TOS - Tractor Overturn Stories	TOS	Dramatic first person accounts of tractor overturns and their consequences and the value of ROPS and seat belts in preventing injury and death	Short stories written by the individuals involved or their loved ones	12 stories from one-page to three or four lines long	Farm community members, community meetings, classrooms	2 to 5 minutes per story plus time for discussion
PFT - Pause for Thought: Should You Install a ROPS Yourself?	PFT	A true story that describes the problems when a farmer decided to install a ROPS himself	Text, in an interesting story format	five pages	Community meeting presentation and discussion, newspaper	10 to 15 min plus time for discussion
TMVC - Facts About Tractor/Motor Vehicle Collisions	TMVC	Summary of facts about tractor & motor vehicle highway collisions from three states (IA, OH, & KY)	Presentation text and charts	11 pages with large type text and charts	Community meeting presentation, driver education classes, group activity	10 - 20 min
5. SIMS - Simulation Exercises	SIMS	A major section of the notebook consisting of the eight interactive, group problem-solving scenarios listed below Scenarios are based on real cases of tractor injuries and close calls	Interactive unfolding simulated events that require user decision making	Eight exercises, seven in paper and pencil format, and one in CD-ROM format	Farm community youth and adults, community meetings, classrooms	20 to 30 minutes for the paper and pencil simulations, 60 to 90 minutes for the CD
NWX - No Way to Meet a Neighbor	NWX	Fatal tractor and motor vehicle highway collision on a summer day during broad daylight and in good weather	Interactive paper and pencil simulation exercise	Nine pages, large type with drawings	Farm community meeting activity, youth and adults, driver education classes, schools	20-30 min
FMM - A Foggy Morning Meeting	FMM	Non-fatal tractor and motor vehicle highway collision on a rural highway in foggy bottom by a creek	Interactive paper and pencil simulation exercise	Nine pages, large type with drawings	Farm community meeting activity, youth and adults, driver education classes, schools	20-30 min
TTX - Tommy's Troubles	TTX	Story about a farm youth who overturns a tractor as he operates a bushhog in tall weeds	Interactive paper and pencil simulation exercise	11 pages, large type, with drawings and news clippings	Farm community meeting activity, youth and adults, classrooms	15-20 min
TRT - Tyler's Ride and Tantrum	TRT	Story about a child who, over the objections of his mother, is a second rider on his grandfather's tractor	Interactive paper and pencil simulation exercise	10 pages, large type with drawings and newspaper clipping	Farm community meeting activity, youth and adults, classrooms	15-20 min
TRX - Tony's Ride (available in Spanish)	TRX	True story about a farm youth who rides along with his father on a tractor, falls off, and is killed	Interactive paper and pencil simulation exercise	12 pages, large type with graphics and newspaper clippings	Farm community meeting activity, youth and adults, classrooms	15-20 min
VVX - Vicki's Visit (available in Spanish)	VVX	Story about the hazards and risks encountered by a young child who visits and plays with her cousins on her uncle's farm	Interactive paper and pencil simulation exercise	10 pages, large type with drawings and newspaper clippings	Farm community meeting activity, youth and adults, classrooms	15-20 min
HOH - Heather on Horseback (available in Spanish)	HOH	Story about a 13-year-old girl who falls while riding her horse unsupervised and without a helmet. She suffers severe head injuries and is disabled for life.	Interactive paper and pencil simulation exercise	13 pages, large type with drawings and newspaper clippings	Farm community meeting activity, youth and adults, classrooms, riding clubs	20-25 min

Getting the Materials and Messages to Farmers

The materials in this notebook present information about the risks of tractor overturns. They stress the effectiveness of ROPS and seat belts for preventing costly and deadly injuries that often result when tractors overturn. The materials are presented in four general ways.

Charts

The problems and their prevention are described in a series of one-page charts, graphs, and drawings. These visual materials can be used to make presentations to farm community groups. They can also be used to create posters for display at community meetings, special events, and local businesses.

Stories

The materials include many short stories about real people and their experiences. The stories describe tractor overturns, the injuries that resulted, and the emotional and financial costs to family members. Some stories are about close calls. Others describe the injury or death of children who were second riders on tractors. Many of these stories can be read aloud in about 30 seconds.

Mass communication of these short stories can be accomplished in several ways. They can be broadcast on local radio stations as a series of public service announcements. They can be printed as a series of short articles in local newsletters and newspapers. They can be printed on slips of paper and included as safety message stuffers in paychecks, billing statements, and other materials that local employers, companies, and businesses regularly distribute to farmers. Some of the stories are longer first person accounts of people who were injured during a tractor overturn, or who had a family member or friend who died in a tractor overturn.

A series of newspaper articles is also included. Some of these stories are about tractor overturn injuries and deaths. Others describe how ROPS and seat belts kept farmers from being hurt during overturns. Some articles are about why farmers purchased ROPS and seat belts for their tractors. These personal accounts and news stories can be presented and discussed at community meetings or reprinted in local or regional newsletters, newspapers, and magazines. Others who wish to duplicate and use the stories may do so. Written permission was obtained for including these stories in the notebook and for allowing others to duplicate and distribute these materials.

Activities

A series of activities, demonstrations, and skits have been developed for use at farm community meetings and in school classrooms. These activities are easy to use, motivating, and most can be completed in 5 to 15 minutes. The activities have been tested and found to be effective.

Simulations

A series of cases based on real-life tractor overturn and second rider incidents are presented as simulation exercises. The simulations are hands-on, small group problem-solving activities for use in farm community meetings and classrooms. During each simulation exercise, persons collaborate in small groups of two to four people and make decisions about actions to prevent a problem or to deal with a situation that has already occurred. Each simulation exercise provides information about what happened in the real case and in other similar cases. For most simulation exercise materials additional information about similar cases is presented as newspaper clippings and brief summaries of fatality investigations. The simulations capture participants’ interest and attention, develop a deeper understanding of farm safety issues, and promote commitment to safe work practices.

Who Should Use the Materials in this Notebook

Unless they are used widely in the community, the materials and activities in this notebook won’t have much impact on the serious problems of tractor overturn and second rider injuries. Therefore, these materials should be used by many people in farm communities; by people who regularly meet with and provide advice and services to farmers and farm organizations.

Community leaders and agencies with copies of this document should make the materials known and available to persons in the community who

ü plan and conduct farm community events

ü plan and conduct meetings and programs for young and adult farmers

ü teach and work with farm youth

ü operate producer organizations, farm businesses, and businesses whose customers are farmers

ü employ farmers in off-farm jobs in manufacturing, business, and service industries

ü provide health services and advice to farmers

ü provide financial services and advice to farmers

ü provide extension services to farmers and farm family members

ü operate community leadership and fraternal organizations

ü conduct farming and vocational education activities

ü sell and service farm tractors

ü publish newspapers or farming-related newsletters and publications

ü broadcast radio and television farming news, commodity reports, weather reports, and public service announcements

ü teach and educate farm community youth, future farmers and young and adult farmers

When many persons and groups in a community begin to use these materials and messages, people become more aware of the risks and consequences of tractor overturns and other farm injuries. As a result, knowledge and attitude changes empower community members to prevent injury events and their associated social and economic costs.

Maintaining and Updating the Notebook

The Kentucky Community Partners for Healthy Farming ROPS project will continue until 2002. New activities and materials will be developed. Some of the materials in the notebook will be revised and improved. Those individuals and agencies that are the “keepers of the notebooks” may wish to update and add to the notebooks as new messages and materials are developed and older materials are updated. The materials being placed in a three-ring binder facilitate the updating process. As materials are updated and new materials are developed, they can be added to the notebook.

Utility of the Collection Materials

The activities and materials in this notebook resulted from the efforts of many people and agencies. The program was developed, implemented, and evaluated in Barren and Fleming Counties in Kentucky with the assistance of scores of community leaders and farmers in both these counties. Many other groups and agencies from within and outside Kentucky also assisted in many ways.

The materials are currently being distributed statewide by the Kentucky Farm Bureau Federation. Virginia Farm Bureau Federation is also using the materials in conjunction with their ROPS incentive award program. Agricultural extension agents at South Carolina State University and Clemson University are using some of the materials with farmers in 14 South Carolina counties. Several other southern and mid western states are also using portions of the materials.

The Kentucky Community Partners worked to create a program, not only for Kentucky, but for the nation as well. Even though many of the stories, activities, and materials originated in Kentucky, most of the materials deal with injury risks and safety problems encountered by nearly all farmers.

Disclaimer and Reproduction Information: Information in NASD does not represent NIOSH policy. Information included in NASD appears by permission of the author and/or copyright holder. More

NASD Review: 04/2002

Developed by the University of Kentucky KY CPHF ROPS Project during 1996-00 with support from CDC/NIOSH Cooperative Agreements U07/CCU408035-05-2 and 06-1 and U06/CCU412900-01, -02, and -03 to the University of Kentucky, Southeast Center for Agricultural Health and Injury Prevention