The Ideal Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing Research Program - Agriculture Forestry and Fishing Research at NIOSH - page 21

Stakeholders
The occupational safety and health program for the AFF industries would be
founded on an understanding of and respect for the unique characteristics of the
AFF communities. Healthy and safe workers and families are the foundation of the
economic and social well-being of the industries. Government, private, academic,
and healthcare professionals all have unique strengths that complement those of the
AFF Program, and all parties are needed to maximize its effectiveness. The program
would be participatory and community- or work population-based and have the
support of the AFF community so that there is buy-in for research intervention
developments. The program would also empower the community to action so
that involvement goes beyond involving stakeholders merely at the beginning and
end. The concept of broader deliberation and decisionmaking among researchers
and populations at risk from the inception of research ideas to their completion
as applications would be explored more in-depth.
Partnership and collaboration with stakeholder groups are integral to favorable
change and improved outcomes. Involving these groups would enable the AFF Pro-
gram to “think outside the box”; stakeholder involvement is especially important
when researchers devise various ways to reach AFF workers for input. Regional
priorities would be developed in collaboration with carefully selected community
study groups in each U.S. Department of Agriculture region where a substantial
portion of the identified population at risk resides and works. For example, a state-
level or regional community study group would include representatives of each of
the five types of workers (see Populations at Risk section within this chapter for
worker classification). The private sector—including the agricultural service and
supply industries, insurance companies, private foundations, legal services provid-
ers, industry trade associations, ethnic self-help groups, and community service
organizations—is an essential part of an effective national strategy. Careful selec-
tion implies that both organizational representatives and unaffiliated individual
workers will be represented. It is expected that community study groups will also
monitor and report to the public on the progress of the program. A reasonable
allocation of program resources to staff and nurture these groups will be required
to support a successful long-term effort. Special efforts will be required to include
full participation of and direct representation of non-English speaking workers,
whether self-employed or hired.
Surveillance
A successful surveillance program requires knowledge about the size, distribu-
tion, and characteristics of “at-risk” populations. That would be followed by sys-
tematic analysis of data and surveillance of hazards, injuries, and illnesses. NIOSH