Work-related injuries within a large urban public school system in the Mid-Western United States

More than 13 million employees are working in the public education sector which includes more than just teachers in the United States. This industry sector also employs custodians, maintenance, and administration. To date, there is very limited information about the type and frequency of injuries for these employees.

To identify injury trends related to frequency and severity for different occupational injuries in a large urban school district.

Between 2014-2015, school district employees reported a total of 598 occupational injuries. Initial analysis of the data provided the frequency of injuries overall and for individual occupational categories. The Severity Index provides a score for job category and injury type based on severity and frequency.

Overall, the Slip, Trip and Fall category had the highest frequency, followed by Combative Situations, and Over-exertion. Teacher and Para-professional workers experienced the greatest number of injuries with violence being the most frequent cause. Based on the Severity Index, Over-exertion was identified as the primary exposure concern for Custodians, while Slip, Trip and Fall category had the greatest impact on Building Engineers.

With the diversity of negative outcomes, the administration will need targeted interventions for the various professions represented in the school systems. The injury severity profile indicates non-teachers should be a high priority for interventions with over-exertion and slips, trips and falls leading the risk.