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. 2022 Sep 8;19(18):11294.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph191811294.

Work-Related Injuries among Insured Construction Workers Presenting to a Swiss Adult Emergency Department: A Retrospective Study (2016-2020)

Ralf Dethlefsen  1 , Luisa Orlik  2 , Martin Müller  3 , Aristomenis K Exadaktylos  3 , Stefan M Scholz  4   5 , Jolanta Klukowska-Rötzler  3 , Mairi Ziaka  2
Affiliations

Work-Related Injuries among Insured Construction Workers Presenting to a Swiss Adult Emergency Department: A Retrospective Study (2016-2020)

Ralf Dethlefsen et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Occupational injuries are one of the main causes of Emergency Department visits and represent a substantial source of disability or even death. However, the published studies and reports on construction-occupational accidents in Switzerland are limited. We aimed to investigate the epidemiology of fatal and non-fatal injuries among construction workers older than 16 years of age over a 5-year period. Data were gathered from the emergency department (ED) of Bern University Hospital. A retrospective design was chosen to allow analysis of changes in construction accidents between 2016-2020. A total of 397 patients were enrolled. Compared to studies in other countries, we also showed that the upper extremity and falling from height is the most common injured body part and mechanism of injury. Furthermore, we were able to show that the most common age group representing was 26-35 years and the second common body part injured was the head, which is a difference from studies in other countries. Wound lacerations were the most common type of injury, followed by joint distortions. By stratifying according to the season, occupational injuries among construction workers were found to be significant higher during summer and autumn. As work-related injuries among construction workers are becoming more common, prevention strategies and safety instructions must be optimized.

Keywords: Suva; adult emergency department; construction site accidents; work-related injuries.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. One of the authors (S.M.S.) works for Suva, a public accident insurance company. Suva had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow chart of medical record selection.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Relationship between the injured body part reported and the length of hospital stay. Outliers are indicated with symbol “×”.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Relationship between the mechanism of injury and length of hospital stay. Outliers are indicated with symbol “×”.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Relation between mechanism of injury and mode of discharge.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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