By the Numbers – Head Protection

DID YOU KNOW?

Injuries to the head are life-changing. Head injuries can result in long-term damage and death, with injuries often including memory loss, fractured bones, and spine damage – some of which cannot be cured.

In 2012, more than 65,000 cases involving days away from work occurred due to head injuries in the workplace (according to the 2015 edition of the National Safety Council chartbook “Injury Facts”). That same year, 1,020 workers died from head injuries sustained on the job.

Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are the primary type of head injuries. TBI is a significant cause of death and disability in the United States, contributing to about 30% of all injury death. Despite the security given to workers from the safety helmet standard, there are still incidents of traumatic brain injury, especially in construction, where there were 2,200 fatalities between 2003 and 2010.

However, according to a survey about worksite accidents and injuries conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), 84% of all workers who suffered head injuries were not wearing head protection.

A mild head injury, such as a concussion, can cost a company over $100k, whereas moderate injuries are estimated to cost $941,000 and severe injuries up to $3 million – and that’s not including the cost of emotional and physical issues.

Work-related injuries are public health issues on a global scale, and they lead to exorbitant medical and social costs as well as to a loss of healthy life and productivity. Work-related fall was the second leading cause of death among work-related injuries after motor vehicle crashes. By the mechanism of injury, the fatal work-related fall injuries accounted for 14% in the US among all case-fatality after work-related injuries. The economic cost from nonfatal work-related fall injuries in the US was nearly 16 billion USD per year, and…