Programs Overview
North Carolina Agromedicine Institute programs are focused on making the day-to-day lives of farmers, fishermen, foresters their workers and families safer and healthier.
If you have a specific safety or health need or simply need advice on how to make your operation generally safer and healthier, contact us. Services are provided at no or minimal cost. And, not to worry – the Institute is strictly educational – not regulatory or advocacy.
We do not report any concerns to any agency – we simply give you information to correct hazards and improve health and wellness.
If you have a specific need that the following programs do not address, let us know. We would be happy to develop a program just for you.
Programs
Certified Safe Farm of North Carolina
Certified Safe Farm: Saving Lives, Improving Health, and Lowering Costs on North Carolina Farms
Certified Safe Farm is a comprehensive agricultural health and safety program for farmers, family members, and employees that saves lives, prevents injury, improves health, and saves costs! In North Carolina, the program involves:
- a comprehensive on-farm safety review that is not shared with any agency,
- occupational health and wellness screenings conducted by Agromedicine health providers, and
- in-person education with farmers and others during safety and health visits.
In North Carolina, the program is a collaboration of NC State University, NC Cooperative Extension and the NC Agromedicine Institute.
To schedule your safety review, contact the Institute at agromedicine@ecu.edu or 252-744-1008.
Child Health and Safety in Agritourism
Do you currently operate or are you thinking about starting an agritourism operation? The Institute can work with you to identify risks to child health and safety, provide suggestions for eliminating risks and assist with training staff who will be working in agritourism.
Want a head start?
Check out our Child Health & Safety in Agritourism guide and
The National Integrating Safety into Agritourism Website.
Farm Theater
Farm Theater was developed at the University of Kentucky by Dr. Deborah Reed with support from the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).
The goal of the program is to influence farmers to make behavior changes that will improve their health and the health of their families and to prevent injuries to themselves and others.
Community members read from a script based on stories woven from real-life experiences to share serious health & safety messages in a relaxed, non-threatening way. Props are minimal so that the audience can focus on what is being said and not on the set. At the conclusion of the script, a facilitated discussion takes place with the audience about what they heard, how it relates to them and resources they can access for more information.
The Institute is pleased to be partnering with Dr. Reed and other colleagues across the US to expand Farm Theater.
Expansion is made possible with funds from the Alex & Rita Hillman Foundation. To learn more about Farm Theater, visit the Rural Health Information Hub project example page.
Interested in having a Farm Theater in your area?
Contact the Institute at 252.744.1008 or
email Dr. Robin Tutor Marcom, tutorr@ecu.edu.
First on Scene
The First on Scene program was designed to teach individuals who are first on scene at a farm incident how to respond safely.
The program can be tailored to fit the specific needs of any farm. Our instructors can also provide CPR/AED/First Aid certification through the Health Safety Institute, which is an OSHA-compliant training program.
The two distinct programs vary depending on the audience:
- Farmers and farm workers learn how to respond appropriately to a farm injury incident or medical emergency. Designed as a 3-hour class, the program can be tailored to your specific needs.
- EMS Personnel and Fire Fighters receive an introduction to the types of injuries, equipment and exposures they might encounter when responding to a farm incident. Originally designed as a 3-hour class, the program can be tailored to the unit’s specific needs.
To learn more about First on Scene, contact the Institute at agromedicine@ecu.edu or 252-744-1008
Fit to Farm©
The goal of Fit to Farm is to improve the health of North Carolina’s farmers, fishermen, foresters, their workers, and their families using a personalized approach that includes:
- health screenings conducted by specially trained healthcare professionals to check for general wellness and specific occupational health-related conditions;
- occupational health and wellness information tailored to the individual’s workplace and activities;
- assistance with the selection, fit and use of personal protective equipment to prevent occupational illness or injury; and
- support services to assist individuals and their families with issues such as insurance coverage, caring for aging family members and work-related stress associated.
Fit to Farm also provides simple tips to manage health and wellness in the workplace using the following modules:
- Disc That, Salt & Fat (Reduce salt and fat intake)
- H2O to Go (Drink more water and less soft drinks)
- Healthy Handfuls (Portion control)
- These Boots are Made for Walkin’ (Be more active)
Modules can be delivered individually (15-20 minutes) or all together (90 minutes).
Services can be provided at your location or in another setting you choose. Schedules are flexible so services can be available at a time that is convenient for you.
To learn more about Fit to Farm,
contact the Institute at 252-744-1008 or
email agromedicine@ecu.edu
Grain Safety/Grain Rescue Programs
The Grain Safety / Grain Rescue Program was developed with two main audiences:
- Farmers and farm workers,
- Fire Fighters and first responders
Programs for farmers and farm workers are primarily safety programs to inform of the hazards, and teach safe grain handling strategies. These vary from 1-4 hours, depending on the needs of the individuals present.
Programs for Fire Fighters and first responders vary from 1-12 hours and consist of safety programs to inform of the hazards, to full hands-on rescue programs.
Interested in offering grain safety or rescue instruction? Reach out to the NC Agromedicine Institute to learn about train-the-trainer opportunities and teaching grain safety and rescue in your community.
For links to other resources on Grain Safety, visit our resources page.
Whatever your needs for grain safety programs, contact the Institute at agromedicine@ecu.edu or 252-744-1008
Health and Safety for Specialty Crops
Mini grants are available to assist farms growing specialty crops with various needs, including cleaning/sanitation equipment and supplies, portable handwashing stations, field sanitation stations with handwashing capabilities, fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, and first aid kits. These funds can also be used to replace mattress covers and mattresses in migrant housing.
Priority for funding is given to producers who:
- are veterans, women, and/or individuals farming with a disability.
- have operated a farm or ranch for 10 years or less either as a sole operator or with others who share this experience.
- are recognized by the USDA as socially disadvantaged, including African Americans, American Indians or Alaskan natives, Hispanics, and Asians or Pacific Islanders.
- have low gross farm sales (under $180,300) and low household income (below the national poverty level) for two consecutive years. For detailed information on poverty levels, visit the Poverty Level Calculator.
For comprehensive details about these grants, read more about farm mini grants and their benefits.
AgrAbility
The North Carolina AgrAbility Program is a federally funded project whose mission is to provide individuals farming with a disability with the education and assistance they need to live successful lives in production agriculture or agriculture-related occupations.
AgrAbility is sponsored by the U.S.D.A and consists of national, state (currently serving 24 states) and regional projects. Each of these projects involves collaborative partnerships between land grant universities and various non-profit disability service organizations.
NC AgrAbility is a collaborative partnership between North Carolina A&T State University, North Carolina Agromedicine Institute, North Carolina Assistive Technology Project and Disability Partners.
NC AgrAbility Partnership has a wide variety of services to offer thanks to the many specialties of our partners. If you or someone you know could benefit from AgrAbility services or would like to learn more about this program please email Beatriz (Betty) Rodriguez at bmrodrig@ncat.edu or 336-285-4680.
You can also learn more at NCAgrAbility.org or the National AgrAbility Website.