Farmers aged 52 who are dealing with cows in the month of February are most likely to end up in hospital with some sort of fracture or injury, a recent study has found.

Almost 150 farmers were admitted to Cork University Hospital with orthopaedic injuries between 2016 and 2020, final year UCC medical student Evelyn Fox has revealed.

With a median age of 52, the majority (28%) of these farmers had injuries caused by cows and most of them occurred in February, her study showed.

Being kicked, head-butted and/or crushed by the cow were the most common reasons for injuries.

Cows, calves and bulls accounted for 90% of the injuries caused by animals, with sheep accounting for just 10%.

Falls

Falls were also a significant cause of injury (21%) to the farmers who ended up in hospital, the results showed.

Falls from heights of above 2m accounted for 9.8% of injuries and falls from heights from below 2m accounted for 11.2%.

Falls of any height occurred in 21.9% of patients over 65.

“These accidents tended to occur when farm buildings were being built or maintained, for example during the replacing and repairing of roofs or painting sheds,” the Mitchelstown native said.

Machinery

When combined, machinery accounted for 16.1% of injuries. Tractors account for the greatest proportion of these at 8.4%.

Across all injuries, most patients were injured on Saturday and Wednesday or during the month of July, while over 30% of patients who were admitted required surgery.

For patients over 65, the most common mechanism of injury was by a tractor.

“Farming accounts for only 7.1% of the workforce but consistently has the highest rate of workplace fatalities and there is a lack of descriptive research in this area,” Fox noted.

This, Fox said, is despite the introduction and implementation of various farm safety initiatives in recent years.

“I come from a dairy and beef farm myself and that’s why I decided to base my research on farming. I was the only one in my year to do it on farming and I think it’s important to increase awareness around farm accidents. It’s also important among healthcare professionals who wouldn’t know that much about farming.”

Fox’s research was overseen by orthopaedic surgeon Colm Taylor.