2018-07-01: Beyond the farm gate – Quest Magazine | Adult Learning Australia

In May 2016 Victorian farmer Karrinjeet Singh-Mahil sat fascinated during a vet’s presentation on calf rearing at a dairy women’s conference in New Zealand when her phone pinged. It was a text message that would change her life. Around the room other women’s phones started going off.

The message was from Fonterra dairy co-operative informing its suppliers it had dropped the price of milk from $5.60 to $1.91 wiping out 70% of Karrinjeet’s family income.

‘With one text message and no warning they grabbed over $100,000 from our budget,’ Karrinjeet says in the short film she has made about the event.

Karrinjeet’s story is one of 24 put together by women farmers as part of a National Centre for Farmer Health (NCFH) project to teach rural women in Victoria how to tell their stories in digital form. The result is ‘From Inside the Farm Gate’ a collection of stories that explore the struggles of life on the farm – from dealing with financial hardship, natural disasters, bereavement and the grief of leaving the farm altogether – and aim to educate, inspire and benefit others living in rural communities.

For Karrinjeet, the aftermath of the Fonterra decision was devastating. ‘When I look back I can’t remember what we did in those days I was so consumed by anger and shock. I was staying at my Mum’s place in New Zealand during the conference and  that night she had a whole bunch of people round to see me before I left but I can’t remember who came to see me off that night, it was all a blur.

‘It took our feet out from under us and we were scrambling to cope. Things were super tight, and for a while we didn’t have a brass razoo. One day at the greengrocer’s my debit card was declined and I had to race round to the Rural Financial Counsellor to get some IGA vouchers. But we sold lots of cows and that kept us going.

‘While my husband Brian’s reaction was to doubt himself, mine was to get really, really angry. I’ve never had issues with my blood pressure before but it shot up and I had to go on medication to keep it under control. Brian lost his voice, he says it’s not related to stress but I think it is.’

Karrinjeet’s digital story turns on the moment she realised something had to change. ‘One day Brian and I were in the dairy and he asked me a question and I just barked an answer back at him. He said, “Did you hear the way you just spoke to me? I’m not the one you should be angry with.” And I was about to snap back but I stopped myself and I thought, “Yes, he’s right”.

‘That was when I thought I need to come up with some strategies for handling this. And we began to fight back.’

Taking charge

Karrinjeet has learned ways of finding joy in the everyday to counter the stress of hard times. She’s taken to hugging loved ones and wearing her headphones and singing along to music that lifts her spirits as she goes about her daily chores, milking cows and tending to the garden.

But the joy of giving has been a revelation. She gathers excess vegetables from her own and others’ gardens and donates them along with her fresh eggs to other farmers doing it hard.

‘It doesn’t matter if you’ve got nothing yourself it feels so wonderful to give. People have said to me, “You could sell those eggs” and I could but I just find I get more out of it by giving them away. Giving to others has been enormously healing for me. It’s hard to put into words but it gives me energy to do more. Focussing on what you’ve lost saps the life out of you. Turning it around and helping other people is extraordinarily powerful.

‘The thing I’d like people to take away from my digital story is that there are ways to cope and the ways we cope are different for each of us.’

Karrinjeet along with 12 other women created and crafted their digital stories in a three day workshop facilitated by Swinburne University and NCFH. Participants learned how to develop and put together a short film using photos, audio recordings, and video footage.

‘The voices of rural women are missing from past and recent history and this was an opportunity for us to hear those voices and to educate and inspire others by sharing their stories.’ Dr Alison Kennedy, National Centre for Farmer Health.

Research shows benefits of digital storytelling

Dr Alison Kennedy, Research Fellow at Deakin University’s National Centre for Farmer Health says ‘People generally come along to workshops with a desire to use their story to help others, but many don’t realise that it will have benefits for them too. Research shows that enabling people to tell these very personal stories in a supportive environment can have powerful mental health benefits. One woman told me that when she finished her digital story it was like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. So it can have a huge cathartic effect for people who come along. People are quite amazed at the impact of expressing feelings that they’ve carried around and kept to themselves for so long.’

Karrinjeet agrees. ‘After you’ve faced a problem and talked about the worst that could happen it doesn’t hold the same power over you.’

With the first stage of producing the stories complete, the next phase is sharing them with as many rural women as possible both on the web and at meetings and conferences.

‘Shaping that story in the workshop and paring it down to its essence helped me understand
more about myself than I had before.’ Karrinjeet Singh-Mahil

Personal stories offer lessons

People are often moved to tears when they watch Lyn Kelson’s story of being just 26 with two small children when her husband died by suicide.

‘You didn’t come home so I went to find you. And find you I did, hanging so high,’ she says in her digital story. Lyn says she wanted to tell this story to give hope to others.

‘I think there’s an altruistic element in our telling our stories. When new audiences see them for the first time I think they recognise an element of their own lives and see that they have that same strength in them as the woman whose film they’re watching.

‘My digital story really hit the mark because it shows how we have an inbuilt ability to overcome rather than be engulfed. Life is full of peaks and troughs but the stories show that we have true grit.

‘At my husband’s funeral I recognised then that a number of people were looking at me thinking “Thank God it’s not me”. But I remember thinking even then that others have done this before me and survived and I can do the same. When things were hard I saw opportunity through that loss that there could be some good to come out of it.

‘I wanted to do the course because I had lived through a tough time, and I thought in telling the story I could give hope to others through my own lived experience.’ Lyn Kelson

‘After my husband died, the community rallied around me. That’s a strong thread in all the stories, how vital a cohesive community is in times of hardship, how it forms a backbone when you need it, whether it’s financial or emotional.

‘People cared for me, for us. It was like a lobster when it’s injured has to grow a new shell and until it does it’s vulnerable. In my case the community protected me until I’d grown a new shell.

‘I think it is so important for us to share these lived experiences and to show that we can grow through hardship. Resilience is a skill that is so vital for today.

Learning technology together

‘I am so proud to be involved in this NCFH project. It was a huge learning curve. Meeting that wonderful group of women where we created a family of people through shared experiences and then filtering our stories out to the wider community has been fabulous.

‘The course was so well thought through, so well coordinated and delivered, and the care afterwards has been great. The facilitators were really great at establishing a transparent and trusting environment so there was this openness and honesty and acceptance that really helped that process along.

‘There were tears for a lot of us in revisiting those events, as we remembered the loss of a loved one or the loss of financial capacity, but it was worth it.’

‘The technology of using the computer and video programs was a bit daunting but the facilitators offered great support. And even when I had to wait for someone to come and help me that time was never wasted because at the same time I was learning the techniques of video production and having these wonderful conversations with other women.

‘At the end of the three days we sat and watched each others’ stories. There were 8 or 9 finished videos and you could see the pride in the women’s faces and we all recognised that we are all quite remarkable women, even though when we all arrived we felt we were just ordinary. But watching those videos we could see that “Hey, we are really something quite special.”’

From Inside the Farm Gate is funded by the Victorian Women’s Trust and the William Buckland Foundation and project support was provided by Swinburne University, Southwest TAFE and the Western District Health Service. You can view and comment on the stories online.
farmerhealth.org.au/inside-farm-gate

View Quest Magazine Online: CLICK HERE

Farmer Health eNews July 2018

Find out all the latest from the National Centre for Farmer Health

• Back by popular demand – Run 4 Farmer Health
• CWA Vic Conference
• ISASH Conference Halifax
• Wellness Wednesday

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2018-6-30: Katrina Myers is on a mission to change the story of rural suicide – ABC News

Fourth-generation avocado farmer Katrina Myers was pulled from her boarding school classroom at 15 and told her father had died by suicide on the family property. Now, she’s helping boost mental health in rural communities, where male suicide is twice as common. She told her story to ABC’s Sian Gard.

Dad was very much a community man, he had heaps of friends, very charismatic. He was warm and so much fun to hang out with. Every year we used to have this pony club camp and Dad would take us on a massive ride.

He didn’t have a history of mental health issues, long-term.

I had no idea he was sick at all; I didn’t even know he was depressed.

In one morning, everything changed. Then, it was like living a double life. I’d had this awesome, perfect, normal childhood and then suddenly everything was different.

I went back to boarding school within a week. I carried on as if nothing had happened. But I could feel this stigma.

I didn’t want to tell people it was suicide because I knew they would feel uncomfortable or really sorry for me.

It wasn’t until I got older and had my own children that a lot of stuff started to come up as I got closer to the age that Dad died.

I now have a good understanding of why Dad got to the point where he felt like he needed to take his own life, so I’ve never had any resentment — just sadness and wishing he was still here for my kids. Wishing it could have been different for him.

My mental health went downhill

After my third child Poppy was born I realised my mental health wasn’t too good.

I was feeling very negative about things, worrying too much about small things and feeling down a lot of the time.

I thought, what’s going on here?

I decided to do something about it. I saw a therapist then started investigating what else I could do myself. It took me about 12 months.

There is so much we can do for our own mental health, it’s incredible really.

Looking after our minds is just like looking after our bodies.

I meditate every day and practise gratitude, I have my own blog, keep a journal and exercise as part of my daily routine.

That’s what I advocate for: work out what works for you to make your mind stronger.

Bringing help into the home

I got involved with The Ripple Effect projectthrough the National Centre for Farmer Health.

It’s an interactive approach to engage people who might be feeling isolated using an online platform, that could reduce stigma around suicide in rural areas.

Often, people don’t realise they’ve got a mental health problem and then they don’t know where to start.

I realised that just by sharing my story and what worked for me, I was helping others. People were approaching me and messaging me to say thank you so much for talking about this.

Markets a meeting of minds

We’ve also developed ways to connect our community offline with local farmers’ markets.

As well as promoting this wonderful agricultural area, they’re a really nice way for people and producers to get together to share their ideas and what their struggles might be.

The recognition makes you feel good about your produce.

Read more & view video interview: 2018-6-30: Katrina Myers is on a mission to change the story of rural suicide – ABC News

2018-06-14: NCFH Press Release – 2018 Photo Competition

FARMER HEALTH IN A CHANGING WORLD – CALLING ALL BUDDING AND KEEN PHOTOGRAPHERS

The National Centre for Farmer Health is providing an opportunity for every Australian to celebrate, educate and inspire the nation about life in a rural farming community.

To commemorate their 10 year anniversary, the National Centre for Farmer Health is running their 4^th national photography competition. The competition, titled ‘Farmer Health in a Changing World’, aims to engage farming and non-farming communities in raising awareness and positively promoting the benefits that farming provides to individuals, families and society.

Judging the competition are renowned photographers Ewen Bell, Jill Frawley, and Robert Drummond.

Entry categories include images representative of farming families, safe farming practices, wild weather, mental wellbeing and young farming innovators. A unique element of this year’s competition calls for photographs highlighting fresh food alongside an original recipe showcasing the produce. A People’s Choice Instagram category gives members of the public a chance to cast their own vote.

Generous cash prizes will be awarded across open, secondary student and primary student entry levels along with participation awards to the primary and secondary schools with the highest proportion of participating enrolled students.

The competition closes on Sunday 22 July 2018. Winners will be announced on Wednesday 12 September at the Hamilton Art Gallery, as part of a networking event for the National Centre for Farmer Health Conference, ‘Good health, wellbeing and safety; Making a difference to farmers’ lives’.

A public exhibition of selected photos will take place during the conference, to be followed by a travelling exhibition at a range of venues across Victoria (locations to be announced). Entries will also be available for viewing on the National Centre for Farmer Health website (www.farmerhealth.org.au).

Submit your entry at www.farmerhealth.org.au/farmer-health-changing-world-2018-photo-competition).

Quote from Director, National Centre for Farmer Health, Dr. Susan Brumby

“The ‘Farmer Health in a Changing World’ photography competition offers a fantastic opportunity to showcase diversity in Australian agriculture”

 “By acknowledging and engaging with our farming community, we can better understand and promote how we, as a society, benefit from their hard work”

Media contact: Samantha Kaspers (03) 5551 8533  samantha.kaspers@wdhs.net

2018-06-12: GEAR UP Teaching Students Ag Safety™ – Flow FM Radio Interview

A new agriculture safety program supported by the National Centre for Farmer Health (NCFH) is empowering the next generation of workers by travelling to schools and educating students first-hand.

Called ‘Gear Up for Ag Health & Safety™‘, the program recognises that agriculture is one of the most hazardous industries in the nation, while aiming to encourage safer workplace practices into the future.

Gear Up is being rolled out across Australia at a secondary and tertiary student level. For more information and to get your school involved, visit farmerhealth.org.au/gear-up-for-ag-health-safety.

To discuss collaboration opportunities or obtain a sponsorship package, you can contact Elizabeth Barrett at NCFH on (03) 5551 8533.

Hear more about it on Flow FM – Radio Interview

Farmer Health eNews June 2018

Find out all the latest from the National Centre for Farmer Health

• Gear up for Ag Health & Safety™ Program
• HONcode Accreditation for 7 years straight – what does it mean?
• 2018 Photo Competition “Farmer Health in a Changing World” – only 7 weeks to go!
• Wellness Wednesday

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2018-05-08: ATVs give farmers false confidence warns safety expert – Farming Independent Ireland

Farmer Health eNews May 2018

Find out all the latest from the National Centre for Farmer Health

• Now is the time to be part of the future and lead the way in Agricultural Health in your community – SCHOLARSHIPS ARE NOW OPEN for HMF702 Healthy & Sustainable Agricultural Communities!
• We’re heading to Agfest Tasmania!
• 2018 NCFH Conference (12 September) ‘Good health, wellbeing and safety: Making a difference to farmers’ lives’ – Abstracts are now invited from health professionals.
• Wellness Wednesday Topics

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2018-04-27: Deakin study shows farmers not properly supported after workplace injuries – Media release

Farmers should have access to tailored rehabilitation programs after serious workplace injuries, according to a first-of-its-kind study from Deakin University which has found their unique needs are being ignored.

The study, carried out in collaboration with Monash University, interviewed 31 Victorian farm workers who had experienced a serious injury on-farm between 2007 and 2013.

The results, recently published in the Journal of Agromedicine, showed many had been forced to sell their farms, lose months of income, or work through their injuries, due to a lack of support in their recovery process.

Lead author Jessica Beattie, a lecturer in Deakin’s School of Medicine, said this was the first qualitative study asking Australian farmers to recount the ramifications of serious workplace injury.

“Farm injury related research has often focused on the incidence of injury rather than farmers’ perspective of their recovery,” Ms Beattie said.

“But we know recovery from a serious injury is difficult, as is life on the land.”

Australian farmers are significantly overrepresented in injury statistics compared to other occupations, and farm injuries account for 17 per cent of all worker fatalities.

Injuries sustained by farmers interviewed in the Deakin study included major fractures, spinal injuries and head trauma, with most of the injuries sustained in quad bike accidents or livestock related incidents.

Ms Beattie said farmers were older compared to other Australian workers and often worked alone for longer hours.

“This places farmers at an increased risk of injury and then provides a unique set of challenges for their recovery,” she said.

“Once discharged from either a hospital or a rehabilitation setting, farmers are potentially returning to recover both at their place of work, and frequently where the injury occurred.

“The farmers we interviewed felt this had a negative impact on their recovery, with many describing they had no other option but to return to work before they were adequately recovered, putting themselves at increased risk of further injury and delaying the recovery process.

“Their reasons for returning to work, despite medical advice to the contrary, were because of the need to ensure farming production continued.”

Ms Beattie said it was clear that farmers needed support tailored to their unique work environment, and taking into account the fact many lived in rural and remote areas, far from rehabilitation services.

“We need to be providing health professionals with appropriate discharge practices for farm workers,” she said.

“So that might be about understanding that they will probably do some farm work on their return, but working out how they can do that in a way that’s going to still let them heal appropriately.

“Ultimately education and training for health professionals who care for farmers post injury needs to be enhanced so they can understand the realities of working and living on a farm.”

As part of addressing this need, the National Centre of Farmer Health – a collaboration between Deakin and the Western District Health Service – offers Australia’s only Graduate Certificate in Agricultural Health and Medicine to assist rural professionals to understand the unique health, wellbeing and safety demands of farming.

The course focuses on common injuries and illnesses in farming populations, including trauma, and since its inception in 2010 more than 135 students have taken part.

Ms Beattie said there also needed to be more education around the financial implications of farm injuries.

“Half of the workers in this industry are not covered by workers compensation because they are self-employed,” she said.

“That’s where personal income protection insurance should come in, but despite the benefits, many farmers remain uninsured as they feel it’s not a priority expense, especially during periods of economic uncertainty.

“The problem is that the health of the farm is often more of priority to them than their own health.”

View this publication: Beattie, J., McLeod, C., Murray, M., Pedler, D., Brumby, S., & Gabbe, B. (2018). What Happens to the Farm? Australian Farmers’ Experiences after a Serious Farm Injury. Journal of Agromedicine, 23(2), 134-143. doi:10.1080/1059924X.2017.1422836

Read more NCFH Publications: HERE

Deakin University Media contacts:
Elise Snashall-Woodhams
Senior Media Coordinator, Deakin University P: 03 9246 8593
M: 0436 409 659
E: e.snashallwoodhams@deakin.edu.au
T: @DeakinMedia

2018.04.25 – International Farm Safety Experts coming to Ireland – Media Release

Two leading International Experts on Farm Safety will share their knowledge at a public seminar on Friday, 4 May from 2.30pm to 4.30pm. The seminar will take place at the Teagasc, College of Amenity Horticulture, National Botanic Gardens, Dublin 9 ( DO9 VY63). The seminar is open to the public and is free of charge.

Professor Susan Brumby, Director of the Australian National Centre for Farmer Health will discuss, both the successes and challenges, of promoting farm health and safety among farming families in Australia.  Australia has one of the advanced cultures for safety and health adoption worldwide.

Professor Brumby will talk, in particular, about some Australian initiatives to prevent death and serious injury with quad bikes (ATV’s). She will also speak about methods for engaging farmers about their health, wellbeing and safety, including preventing skin cancer from UV (sun) exposure and noise induced hearing loss.

Dr Barbara Lee is Director of the USA National Children’s Centre for Rural and Agricultural Health and Safety, located in Marshfield, Wisconsin. The focus of Dr Lee’s professional career has been advocating for the safety of children who live, visit and work on farms in the USA.

Dr Lee has led the national initiative to develop an action plan for childhood agricultural injury prevention that was funded through the United States Congress.  Dr Lee will outline research on using the The North American Guidelines for Children’s Agricultural Tasks (NAGCAT). These are a safety resource created to assist parents in selecting safe work for their children 7-16 years of age.

Professor Brumby and Dr Lee are both in Ireland to participate in the International Congress on Occupational Health (ICOH) taking place in Dublin with over 3,000 delegates from around the World.

Booking is required to attend the seminar. Please contact Dr John McNamara, Teagasc Health and Safety Specialist at: john.g.mcnamara@teagasc.ie

Sustainable farm families across the globe– the most important part of any farm is a healthy farm family

Background Farmers across the globe have increased risks – accident, injury, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, suicide and zoonosis. They also face difficulties accessing expertise exacerbated by large distances and lack of transport. The Sustainable Farm Families (SFF) program commenced in Australia in 2003 and has delivered 151 programs to over 2500 Australian farm men and women. In 2014, SFF commenced in Alberta, Canada and over 400 farmers have participated including 17 Hutterite communities. Each SFF program consists of 3 workshops, over 4 days, approximately 6–12 months apart. Methods SFF is a multifaceted health program, developed specifically for the agricultural context. Each workshop is facilitated by trained SFF nurses and an agricultural facilitator. At the beginning of each workshop a full health assessment is gathered—anthropometric measures, lipid studies, glucose, blood pressure, psychosocial distress, waist measurement and% body fat. Health and safety behaviours are also reviewed. Education sessions on CVD, diabetes, stress, farm safety, anxiety, depression, diet and nutrition, respiratory conditions, pesticides, physical activity, men’s health and women’s health are devliered. Participants were >18 years, spoke English and were farming. Diabetes risk was assessed by the validated AUSDRISK or CANRISK tool and psychosocial distress using the Kessler K10. Results More men than women participated showing that farmers are interested in their health, wellbeing and safety. ‘Can’t take care of the farm if you don’t take care of yourself.’ This presentation will discuss the baseline results from Australia and Canada. Where longitudinal data is available it will be discussed. In Australia, the results showed that the more risk factors you had when you began the SFF program the better you did, including reducing your risk factors. Conclusion Both the Australian and Canadian program have been positively and extensively independently evaluated. The SFF program has been successfully repeated and transferred to Alberta, Canada, saving lives and saving money across the globe.

Agrichemical exposure in Australian farmers – monitoring, measuring and making a difference

Exposure to organophosphates at low levels over time has been associated with neurological conditions. In-field Personalised Cholinesterase Assessment Project (PCAP) is identifying the effect on cholinesterase (ChE) inhibition in Victorian (Australia) farmers caused by the application of organophosphates (OPs) and ChE inhibiting insecticides. Accurate field assessment is particularly important for remote rural communities and current available measurement does not accurately estimate individual risk. Funded by the Shepherd Foundation and commencing in April 2016 this work trials an innovative, transportable assessment tool, identifying farmers with reduced ChE activity, who are at risk of neurological symptoms and/or unknown chronic low level exposure. Using oxime regeneration to stimulate recovery ChE in vitro—a more accurate and meaningful estimate of the percentage inhibition of cholinesterase—is generated for the farmer. This new approach will provide farmers with instant results from a measurement tool using their own ChE inhibition range. Validated across 10 time points in 5 Victorian farming locations, the study involves 61 farmers and agricultural workers (crop and/or livestock) aged between 20–75 years. This presentation will discuss the results generated using this novel, objective and portable field test including post participation behavioural changes. This research is providing farmers with fast evidence of personal exposure with individual results, resulting in practice change, attitude shift, prevention of further exposures and possible reduction or change of pesticide use.