Safety intervention programs for at-risk teens and adult farmers are most effective when they are incorporated into the daily activities where they typically congregate and are accessible.  Green & Kreuter (2005) developed this general health promotion model.

The Economics of Prevention (EOP1) program uses a unique approach that helps students, teachers, parents and other community members comprehend the individual and social costs of injury (Myers, Cole, Mazur & Isaacs, 2008) and reaches at-risk teens where they are most accessible -- in their high school classrooms.

Farmers are centrally concerned with costs. Frequently, they decide to forgo a ROPS or machine guard due to the direct cost of the equipment. But there are significant indirect and social costs they often don’t consider. 

By training pre-career teachers and Extension agents we will be able to teach hundreds of at-risk farm youth to recognize and understand the social costs of injuries in lost work time, ongoing medical and financial burdens and various other long and short-term expenses. Understanding these complex decision processes and helping the farmer to evaluate the true costs of occupational hazards and see the value of injury prevention strategies is key to reducing risks and implementing safe farm practices.