Phayong Thepaksorn



Project title: The Mortality of Occupational Accidents and Injuries in Thailand

Degree: MPH | Program: Environmental and Occupational Health (EOH) | Project type: Thesis/Dissertation
Completed in: 2006 | Faculty advisor: Matthew C. Keifer

Abstract:

Occupational accidents and injuries are incidents that occur while working or doing activities related to work. There are several impacts such as pain, suffering, absence, death and economic consequences. In Thailand, injuries comprised a significant part of first three major causes of deaths. This descriptive study was a secondary analysis date from the National Injury Surveillance (IS) of Bureau of Epidemiology of Ministry of Public Health between 2001 and 2004. All cases fro the surveillance database of 29 regional and general hospitals around the country that indicated the injury occurred while working was included in this study. Of the total cases recorded in this period, there were 65,275 injuries on average per year reported through the system. Of these, a mean of 4,384 (6.77%) cases were work-related injuries. Of these patients with work related injuries, 84.87% were male workers. The highest number of work related injuries was found in the age groups between 20 to 40 years old. The most occupational common type of worker reported to the registry with an occupational injury was laborers, comprising on average 2,500 cases each year. Agricultural workers were the next most commonly represented group with about 850 cases per year. However, the proportion of injuries due to occupational causes was craftsmen (19.54%), fisheries (18.80%), and drivers (18.80%). The mean annual proportion of fatal occupational cases was 2.80% of total occupational cases.