Occupational Injury Prevention Research Training

Occupational Injury Prevention Research Training (OIPRT), in concert with programs in Occupational Medicine, Occupational Health Nursing, and Industrial Hygiene, among others, is part of the nationally funded Midwest Center for Occupational Health and Safety. This program provides a multifaceted approach to advanced academic and research training, with a primary goal to prevent and control occupational injuries.

Students will be engaged in course work and research in the general realm of injury epidemiology and control. Some examples of past and current research efforts, both epidemiological/surveillance and clinical investigations, have included agricultural trauma, low­back injury, repetitive motion trauma, health practices and injuries in the workplace, work­related amputations, and work­related violence. Integral to these efforts is a basic understanding of dynamic interactions among the agents/energies (mechanical, chemical, thermal, electrical, radiation, etc.) and the hosts/worker populations within the environment.

The degree provided from this program is a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Environmental Health.

Background: The Occupational Injury Problem

Unintentional injuries continue to rank number one in terms of working years­of­life lost in the United States. Combined sources of injury data indicated that, in 2006, unintentional occupational injuries accounted for nearly 5,000 deaths and 3.7 million disabling injuries; these injuries resulted in 80 million lost workdays during 2006, and an estimated 65 million future work days lost. The total direct and indirect costs of work­related injuries were conservatively estimated at $165 billion. Workers in agriculture, mining, construction, and the transportation/public utilities industries are at greatest risk for occupational injuries.

In addition to these considerations, there is a need to recognize the true boundaries of the work environment. For example, the fact that up to 40 percent of all occupational fatalities in the United States are associated with motor vehicle crashes, the major cause of occupational death, identifies a need for occupational injury prevention and control programs that incorporate a scope beyond the physical confines of a workplace. Of further concern is the fact that time lost from off­the­job injuries is frequently a greater problem than for injuries incurred on­the­job (a ratio of 2.5:1) and, also, results in significant costs to both the employers and employees.

There is also evidence that children and adolescents experience occupational injuries disproportionately. While the Fair Labor Standards Act, which includes federal provisions for child labor protection, generally applies to those under the age of 16 years, 14 and 15 year­olds can be employed in many retail and service jobs. In agriculture, children under the age of 12 years can work on their parents’ farms or on farms small enough to be excluded from the provisions of the act, and in certain seasonal work. Women and workers of color, among others, are also at high risk in certain occupations.

Intentional injuries are also recognized as a major problem in the work environment, accounting for the third major cause of occupational death, overall, exceeded only by motor­vehicle and fall­related deaths; it is also the second major cause of occupational fatality for women. Limited data have been available from population­based studies of non­fatal intentional injuries. However, evidence from recent research conducted by some of the OIPRT program and other ERC faculty and students, has revealed significant problems pertinent to non­fatal violence among certain occupational groups that result in major physical, psychological, and sociological consequences to the victims, and high financial costs both to the victims and to the employers.

It is apparent that there has been a major deficiency in trained personnel who can develop injury prevention and control programs, based on sound scientific principles, to address these occupational problems adequately. The OIPRT program, designed to train highly qualified leaders, is among the few programs in the country that can provide unique training opportunities to meet the needs for academicians and other researchers who can ultimately impact this deficiency.

Degree Offered

The degree provided from this program is a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Environmental Health. Candidacy for the PhD program requires completion of the master’s degree (or the equivalent) in Environmental Health or related field. The necessary course work associated with the doctoral program is determined with the advisor (with program/graduate school approval) and is based upon the primary focus and proposed research endeavor of each student.

Curriculum

PhD Curriculum and Course Information 2009­2010

All students complete a rigorous curriculum, including occupational safety engineering and science courses, epidemiology, injury/occupational epidemiology, biostatistics, advanced epidemiology methods, research and design courses, occupational psychology, and coursework that provides both breadth and depth in environmental and occupational health as the context for their research efforts.

Visit the OIPRT PhD website

Careers

Occupational Health Services Research and Policy (OIPRT) graduates are employed in academic and research positions in various institutions including academic, corporate and industrial settings, health agencies, and health care facilities.

Here is a sampling of job titles and employers of our graduates:

Former Students:

Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota and Coordinator, Polytrauma and Blast­Related Injuries QUERI, Center for Chronic Disease Outcomes Research Veterans’ Administration Medical Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota Assistant Professor, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Assistant Professor, University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire, Environmental Sciences, including occupational health and safety

Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Associate Professor, College of Public Health, Occupational Safety and Health, Chang Jung University, Taiwan

Clinical Assistant Professor, School of Nursing, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Consultant, Injury/Occupational Injury Prevention – New South Wales, Australia

Coordinator, Employee and Patient Safety, Allina Corporation, Minnesota

Epidemiology Consultant, Minnesota

Epidemiologist; Program Director, Tauri Group, Washington DC

Epidemiologist: Head – Epidemiology, Dow Corning Corporation, Public Affairs/Food and Drug Administration Liaison, Midland, Michigan

Post­Doctoral Fellow, Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University of Illinois – Chicago

Post­Doctoral Fellow, School of Public Health and Multicultural Center for Academic Excellence, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Research Project Director, University of Buffalo, Buffalo, New York

Research/Safety Engineering Manager, Technology Laboratory, Nike, Beaverton, Oregon

State Program Administrative Principal, Minnesota Department of Human Services – Injury/Illness Data Analyst

Post­Doctoral Research Fellows:

Assistant Professor, Department of Management and Marketing, University of Wisconsin­Eau Claire

Associate Professor, Hacettepe University, Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, Ankara, Turkey

Professor, College of Medicine, Chungnam National University, Taejon, Korea

Contact Information Faculty Program Directors

Susan Goodwin Gerberich, PhD

Professor and Director

612­625­5934 or [email protected]

Bruce H. Alexander, PhD

Associate Professor and Co­Director

612­625­7934 or [email protected]

EnHS Student/Academic Program Coordinator

Khosi Nkosi

612­625­0622 or [email protected]