Ss40-06 Italy: Special Attention to Improve Levels of Health Coverage in Agriculture

Introduction One of the main problems existing in agriculture is a lack of access to health surveillance in the workplace. This is particularly critical, considering that agriculture is considered by the WHO one of the most dangerous and unhealthy working activities. Among agricultural workers, seasonal, family, and self-employed workers suffer the lowest levels of coverage and are not considered in the national laws, even in countries where the coverage is good, like Italy. Materials and Methods To increase the levels of coverage in the sector, a specific law decree has been promulgated in the country, addressed at seasonal workers. To comply with the new law, a targeted working group has been created by the Region of Lombardy, with a tripartite composition made of representatives of trade unions, of the employers’ associations and of academia and the public healthcare system. Results The working group stated that, according to the Alma Ata declaration, it is necessary to create structures able to bring healthcare close to the places where rural people live and work, through the creation of a "Territorial Integrated Prevention System" (TIPS), to be set up through the involvement of all the relevant actors and stakeholders. In these structures it should be possible to carry out health surveillance of workers, meetings, and training activities, and to set up prevention strategies. Conclusions The creation of the TIPS represents the first step to improve agricultural workers' access to health surveillance in the workplace, in particular of the most disadvantaged subgroups, in a sector of strategic relevance for prevention.