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Workplace
Original research
Occupational injuries caused by fire and smoke in Victoria, Australia, 2003–2021: a descriptive study
  1. Janneke Berecki-Gisolf1,2,
  2. Win Wah1,
  3. Karen Walker-Bone1,3
  1. 1 Monash Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  2. 2 Victorian Injury Surveillance Unit, Monash University Accident Research Centre, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  3. 3 MRC Versus Arthritis Centre for Musculoskeletal Health and Work, University of Southampton Faculty of Medicine, Southampton, UK
  1. Correspondence to Dr Janneke Berecki-Gisolf, Victorian Injury Surveillance Unit, Monash University Accident Research Centre, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia; janneke.berecki-gisolf{at}monash.edu

Abstract

Objectives Hospital attendance related to fire, flame or smoke exposure is commonly associated with work. The aim of this study was to examine time trends and risk factors for work-related fire/flame/smoke injuries in Victoria, Australia.

Methods This study was based on emergency department (ED) presentation records from the Victorian Emergency Minimum Dataset, 2003–2021. Cases were people aged 15–74 years with injury-related ED presentations, if cause of injury was recorded as fire/flame/smoke, based on coded data and/or narratives. Work-related rates were calculated per employed persons; non-work rates were calculated per population. Work-related and non-work-related cases were compared using logistic regression modelling.

Results There were 11 838 ED presentations related to fire/flame/smoke: 1864 (15.7%) were work-related. Non-work-related rates were 12.3 ED presentations per 100 000 population, and work-related rates were 3.43 per 100 000 employed persons annually. Over the study period, work-related rates decreased annually by 2.0% (p<0.0001), while non-work rates increased by 1.1% (p<0.0001). Work-related cases (vs non-work) were associated with summer (vs winter), but the association with extreme bushfire periods (Victorian ‘Black Saturday’ and ‘Black Summer’) was not statistically significant. Work-related cases were less severe than non-work-related cases, evidenced by triage status and subsequent admission.

Conclusions Rates of occupational fire/flame/smoke-related injury presentations decreased over the past two decades in Victoria, while non-work-related rates increased. This could reflect improved safety in the workplace. Hospital data, however, cannot be used to distinguish occupation or industry therefore, employment data linkage studies are recommended to further inform workplace preventive measures.

  • Wounds and Injuries
  • Materials, exposures or occupational groups
  • Occupational Health
  • Firefighters
  • Epidemiology

Data availability statement

Data may be obtained from a third party and are not publicly available.

https://doi.org/10.1136/oemed-2024-109428

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    Data availability statement

    Data may be obtained from a third party and are not publicly available.

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    Footnotes

    • X @kwb_doc

    • Contributors JB-G: conceptualisation, data curation, analysis, interpretation, writing–original draft. WW: writing–review and editing. KW-B: writing–review and editing. JB-G, KW-B, WW: responsible for the overall content as the guarantor.

    • Funding This study was partly supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) grant (application 1201353).

    • Competing interests None declared.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.