State jobs can take toll

State corrections officers face many dangers inside the rough environment of a prison. Utah Highway Patrol troopers, too, might find themselves in harm's way in any number of unforeseen circumstances on the road.

But the state agency where more workers are injured on the job than any other is the Utah State Developmental Center. The American Fork campus is home to some of the state's most severely mentally and physically challenged people. Assisting in their everyday needs takes a toll on employees' backs, wrists and ankles.

"It is a higher-risk work environment," said Tim Villnave, a loss-control specialist for the Utah Office of Risk Management.

Developmental center employees file more Workers Compensation Fund claims than any department in state government, including Corrections and Public Safety. On average, more than one-third of the center's 720 employees, the majority of whom are direct-care providers, make claims each year.

Three of the top four agencies for claims over the past seven years — Utah State Developmental Center, Department of Human Services, Utah State Hospital — are social service providers. Human Services, which includes divisions for youth corrections and child and family services, employs some 5,000 people statewide.

Workers compensation claims from the developmental center alone typically total about $600,000 a year, according to state risk management reports. The amount for 2003 is just under $400,000, though claims are still being processed. The total for all state agencies last year exceeds $1.5 million.

"You do everything you can to keep your workers and your clients safe," Department of Human Services spokeswoman Carol Sisco said. "But there are going to be more injuries than someone doing a desk job."

Looking over injury reports for child and family services, John Mathews, human resources director, said it's difficult to pinpoint anything inherently dangerous about working in that division. There are slip-and-falls, dog bites and traffic accidents, all likely to have occurred as caseworkers go to people's homes to investigate child abuse.

"It's clear to me it's all kinds of stuff," he said.

Reasons for and causes of injuries at the developmental center where residents demand 24-hour care are more obvious.

"There are so many activities that have the possibility to cause injury," said Karen Clarke, developmental center superintendent.