Gaps in Workplace Injury Reporting Among Physicians to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics

Andrew T Gabrielson; Kristin Chrouser; M Susan Hallbeck; Tara Cohen; Claudia Corwin

doi:10.1097/JOM.0000000000003295

Gaps in Workplace Injury Reporting Among Physicians to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics

J Occup Environ Med. 2024 Dec 3. doi: 10.1097/JOM.0000000000003295. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Andrew T Gabrielson¹, Kristin Chrouser², M Susan Hallbeck, Tara Cohen³, Claudia Corwin⁴

Affiliations

¹ James Buchanan Brady Urological Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
² Department of Urology, University of Michigan School of Medicine, VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
³ Department of Surgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
⁴ Department of Internal Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA.

PMID: 39639519
DOI: 10.1097/JOM.0000000000003295

Abstract

Objective: To identify gaps in nonfatal injury and illness (NII) reporting between physicians and other occupations.

Methods: Bureau of Labor Statistics data (2011-2019) were analyzed, comparing annualized NII incidence rates using incidence rate ratios (IRR), with physicians as the reference.

Results: Between 2011-2019, physicians reported significantly lower NII rates compared to high-hazard non-medical occupations (IRR 17.2-70.8, all p < 0.01) and most low-hazard non-medical occupations (IRR 1.2-6.3, all p < 0.01), except lawyers. NII rates among physicians were also lower than those in non-physician medical occupations (IRR 1.4-27.6, all p < 0.01). In 2020, relative NII rates between physicians and non-physician medical occupations decreased but returned to pre-pandemic levels by 2021.

Conclusions: Physicians report significantly lower NII rates than other occupations, likely due to underreporting or undercounting, highlighting a potential gap in occupational injury data.