Translating the Fisherman First Aid and Safety Training (FFAST) for Commercial Fishermen in the Southeastern United States

Abstract Commercial fishing is a dangerous occupation due to challenging work conditions, long work hours, harsh weather conditions and chronic diseases that result from these exposures. Georgia’s commercial fishermen represent an aging workforce at risk for penetrating wounds, slips and falls, musculoskeletal strain, and opioid

use and abuse. Although non-fatal injuries are rarely reported, our team has documented a clear need for relevant first aid and safety training that addresses these risks and improves the safety culture among commercial fishermen. Existing first aid courses are either not specific to the fishing environment or were

designed for different climates and working conditions than in Georgia. Besides operating in a warm-water climate, Georgia’s commercial fishermen also target different species and generally operate differently than the commercial fishing industry in the Pacific northwest. Fishing operations are generally small-scale and are

owned and operated independently, with many fishermen working alone. We intend to focus our regional adaptation of FFAST (Southeast and Gulf Coast FFAST; SGC-FFAST) for participants in the two largest commercial fisheries in the state (shrimp and blue crab). The proposed training program will employ a

systematic, community-based approach to translate the existing Fishermen First Aid and Safety Training (FFAST) designed for fishermen in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest into a program with potential for broad dissemination in the Southeast and Gulf Coast (SGC-FFAST). Georgia fishermen and additional relevant

stakeholders will be engaged throughout the process. First, we will conduct key informant interviews and focus groups to translate the FFAST content, implementation, and evaluation methodology for fishermen in Georgia (Aim 1). Our second aim is to pilot test and refine SGC-FFAST content, activities, and assessment materials

with a core group of fishermen. Finally, we will implement and evaluate SGC-FFAST across coastal Georgia, assessing participant knowledge and skill competency (Aim 3). Our approach is centered on respect for the fishing community and their autonomy in the translation of FFAST. Our methodology is clearly aligned with the

Research to Practice (r2p) approach. We will leverage long-established relationships with commercial fishermen, their families, dock workers, the US Coast Guard, and other stakeholders to partner on the adaptation of content, activities, and assessment (Aim 1). We also will invite members of the fishing community

to observe and provide feedback on the pilot test (Aim 2) and final course (Aim 3), keeping open lines of communication. High levels of community engagement will help to cultivate a culture of safety and meet the training needs of commercial fishermen in Georgia. Our systematic and robust methodology optimizes the

potential for scalability across the Southeast and Gulf Coast with long-term impacts of reducing injury and mortality among Georgia commercial fishermen, improving community capacity for safety training and quality of life for the fishing community.