A Social and Occupational Study of Injured Hands

Most of us depend on our hands for our livelihood. Even today when the skilled hand of the craftsman has largely been replaced by the simpler movements of the machine minder, very little can be done in industry without the skilled use of the worker's hands, and the effects of an injury to the hand are probably no less than the effects of damage to the eye or to the head. The objects of this study were: (1) to find out the causes of hand injuries amongst a group of men working in the north east of England; (2) to record the opinions of these men about why their injury happened; (3) to discuss prevention; (4) to enquire into the cost of these hand injuries, measured in terms of money and time lost by the