Open Collections

UBC Faculty Research and Publications

Determinants of Injury and Death in Canadian Firefighters : A Case for a National Firefighter Wellness Surveillance System Ramsden, Rachel; Smith, Jennifer; Turcotte, Kate; Garis, Len; Kunz, Kenneth; Maxim, Paul; Thomas, Larry; Pike, Ian, 1958-

Abstract

Occupational injury is a significant concern facing the Canadian workforce resulting in lost work time and income, medical expenses, compensation costs, and long-term health problems or disability. Previous research has shown health risks associated with employment as a firefighter, and exposure to a variety of injury-related hazards in the course of their occupation. Extreme temperatures, toxic substances, strenuous physical labour, violence and other traumatic events are potential risks that firefighters may experience when responding to emergencysituations. The purpose of this report is to describe injury, disease and death among Canadian firefighters. The report aims to help the reader to understand the causes of injury, disease and death among Canadian firefighters through an extensive review of previous research, as well as a detailed analysis of injury claims data. Claims data from the Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada (AWCBC) and WorkSafeBC for the years 2006 to 2015 for professional and volunteer firefighters are presented to define priority issues for targeted health promotion and injury prevention interventions.

Item Metadata

Title
Determinants of Injury and Death in Canadian Firefighters : A Case for a National Firefighter Wellness Surveillance System
Creator
Ramsden, Rachel; Smith, Jennifer; Turcotte, Kate; Garis, Len; Kunz, Kenneth; Maxim, Paul; Thomas, Larry; Pike, Ian, 1958-
Contributor
B.C. Injury Research and Prevention Unit; Children's Hospital (Vancouver, B.C.). Research Institute
Date Issued
2018-02
Description
Occupational injury is a significant concern facing the Canadian workforce resulting in lost work time and income, medical expenses, compensation costs, and long-term health problems or disability. Previous research has shown health risks associated with employment as a firefighter, and exposure to a variety of injury-related hazards in the course of their occupation. Extreme temperatures, toxic substances, strenuous physical labour, violence and other traumatic events are potential risks that firefighters may experience when responding to emergencysituations. The purpose of this report is to describe injury, disease and death among Canadian firefighters. The report aims to help the reader to understand the causes of injury, disease and death among Canadian firefighters through an extensive review of previous research, as well as a detailed analysis of injury claims data. Claims data from the Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada (AWCBC) and WorkSafeBC for the years 2006 to 2015 for professional and volunteer firefighters are presented to define priority issues for targeted health promotion and injury prevention interventions.
Subject
Adults (20-64); Workplace injury; Injury policy and prevention
Genre
Report
Type
Text
Language
eng
Date Available
2021-05-06
Provider
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
DOI
10.14288/1.0397309
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/2429/78175
Affiliation
Medicine, Faculty of; Other UBC; Non UBC; Pediatrics, Department of
Citation
Ramsden R, Smith J, Turcotte K, Garis L, Kunz K, Maxim P, Thomas L, Pike I. Determinants of Injury and Death in Canadian Firefighters: A Case for a National Firefighter Wellness Surveillance System. A report by the BC Injury Research and Prevention Unit, for the University of the Fraser Valley: Abbotsford, BC. February 2018.
Peer Review Status
Unreviewed
Scholarly Level
Faculty; Researcher
Rights URI
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Aggregated Source Repository
DSpace

Item Media

Item Citations and Data

Rights

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International