A new course has been launched by Aberdeen University to cut the death toll of farmers – using techniques adopted by the aviation industry.
Farming is the most dangerous industry in the UK, with 14,000 non-fatal injuries and 39 deaths recorded during 2018/19.
Causes have remained broadly the same over the past five years, with being struck by a vehicle, injured by an animal or a fall from height the most common killers.
Now Aberdeen University has teamed up with Kura Human Factors to develop the Non-Technical Skills in Agriculture Course.
The programme draws on life-saving skills used in other high-risk industries such as aviation, off-shore drilling and healthcare.
A league of its own
Considered the first-of-its-kind, course team leader Amy Irwin said the course focuses on the skills that can avoid so many of the accidents on farms.
She said: “Non-technical skills fall into cognitive-thinking skills – such as decision-making and situation awareness, and social interaction skills – such as teamwork and communication.
“Our research has found that these skills, in conjunction with technical know-how, are key to ensuring safe and effective performance at work.
“We hope that by providing a new, novel, training course in these skills we can turn our research findings into improved safety for farmers.”
‘I lost my dad’
Kura director Niven Phoenix, an airplane and former military pilot whose father was killed in an aviation industry accident, said this evidence based non-technical skills course for agricultural workers “is long overdue”.
He added: “As someone who lost his father to an aviation accident I know that cultures and behaviours are intrinsic to safety.
“I feel we have ignited a spark that will continue to grow, acting as a catalyst for change and bringing those same aviation safety behaviours into our agriculture industry.
“One thing is for certain we cannot continue in the same vein in agriculture with statistics that make it a safety lottery when people leave the security of their homes.”
