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Work‐related non‐fatal injuries among foreign‐born and US‐born workers: Findings from the U.S. National Health Interview Survey, 1997–2005
Author(s) -
Zhang Xiaofei,
Yu Songlin,
Wheeler Krista,
Kelleher Kelly,
Stallones Lorann,
Xiang Huiyun
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
american journal of industrial medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1097-0274
pISSN - 0271-3586
DOI - 10.1002/ajim.20642
Subject(s) - medicine , foreign born , demography , occupational safety and health , odds ratio , confidence interval , population , confounding , injury prevention , ethnic group , poison control , environmental health , gerontology , pathology , sociology , anthropology
Background Millions of foreign‐born workers are employed in the US. Population‐based surveys have value in describing the non‐fatal work‐related injuries that these workers suffer. Methods Using data from the 1997–2005 National Health Interview Survey, we compared the rates of non‐fatal work‐related injuries among foreign‐born and US‐born adult workers. Logistic regression was used to produce work‐related injury odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) by nativity and years of residence while controlling for sex, age, race/ethnicity, education, poverty, family size, insurance status, delayed medical care, and alcohol use. Industry‐specific rates were also compared. Results Foreign‐born workers reported a lower rate of work‐related injuries than US‐born workers, 50 per 10,000 foreign‐born workers versus 89 per 10,000 US‐born workers ( P < 0.01). After controlling for confounding variables, the OR of work‐related injuries for foreign‐born workers as compared to US‐born workers was 0.50 (95% CI = 0.38–0.66). The construction, agriculture/forestry and fisheries, and manufacturing industries had the highest work‐related injury rates for both groups of workers. Conclusions Foreign‐born workers had a lower overall rate of work‐related injury when compared to US‐born workers. Both US‐born and foreign‐born workers face significant injury risks, especially in certain industries. Interventions tailored with ethnic and cultural differences in mind are still warranted. Am. J. Ind. Med. 52:25–36, 2009. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.