The increased risk of farm accidents due to reduced hearing and eyesight as farmers get older was flagged up today (Wednesday, July 18) as part of Farm Safety Week.
Older farmers are being encouraged to think more about ways they can improve their health and safety this week by the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA), with regular checkups underlined as key to achieving this.
Older farmers are undoubtedly at an increased risk on the farm.
The majority of these fatal accidents were caused by tractors or machinery, livestock and falls from height.
This percentage was even higher when accounting for last year on its own, according to the HSA, with 66% of fatal accident victims aged 60 or over in 2017.
Commenting on these statistics, IFA president Joe Healy said: “Unfortunately, we can’t stay young forever and we have to recognise that ageing does affect not just our mobility and strength but also our hearing and eyesight.
This places older farmers at an increased risk of accident on the farm.
“We are encouraging older farmers to recognise their limitations, examine their work practices and to make sure to ask for help when they need it.
“We’re also highlighting the importance of getting regular health, hearing and eyesight checks so you can identify any issues, and take steps to address them or to change how you work on the farm in light of them.”
Free hearing checks
The IFA has partnered with Hidden Hearing to encourage farm families to avail of free hearing checks for anyone over the age of 50.
But further investigation actually showed that inability to hear conversations and background noise meant the problem was actually more widespread.
Worryingly, one in four farmers also admitted to never wearing ear protection in noisy farm environments.
Excessive noise exposure is a hazard on farms and can damage hearing over the years, so it is important to check for hearing loss that can place farmers at increased risk of accident, the hearing specialists say.
If you have to raise your voice to be heard by someone within an arm’s length, the noise levels could be a serious risk to your hearing.
“In that situation you should reduce the noise, or remove yourself from the noisy area at frequent intervals if you can. Ideally, help prevent hearing loss by using earplugs or other ear protection,” Leddy said.
Needing to turn up the TV or radio volume, feeling that people are mumbling more, and having to ask for things to be repeated are the first obvious signs of hearing loss.
Quality of life
Of all the senses, hearing fundamentally affects quality of life and has important health and safety implications, according to Hidden Hearing CEO Stephen Leddy, who says that over half the population aged between 60 and 80 are likely to have measurable hearing loss.
“Hearing loss is a simple fact of life, as we age. But, hearing facilitates communication and social interaction, supporting our relationships and daily activities, and it means we can be alerted to danger and more conscious of it”, Leddy explained.
Farmers can also avail of a 15% discount on any hearing devices that may be required, if they book an appointment at any Hidden Hearing branch before the end of August, 2018, and mention the Farm Safety week promotion when booking.
Detail of terms and conditions is carried on the Hidden Hearing website.