Follow-back study of oldest workers with emergency department-treated injuries

The aging of the U.S. workforce highlights the need to address issues affecting older workers specifically. Telephone surveys were conducted with injured workers identified through a surveillance system based in a sample of emergency departments in the United States. The 176 interviewed cases correspond to a national estimate of 8,263 (s.e. = 1,258) injuries to workers aged 63 years and older during May 15-September 30, 1993. Five percent reported limitations in the types or amount of work they could perform prior to the injury. Ninety-four percent reported familiarity with the task resulting in injury. Fifty-one percent returned to work without missing any workdays; however, 69% required return visits to a health care provider. Thirty-four percent reported receiving training in injury prevention. Twenty percent of the injured workers were self-employed and 43% worked for small businesses. Data from this study provide insight into routinely collected statistics and have implications for future research and intervention efforts.