The risk of fatal accidents is much higher for fishermen than for other occupations.

So it is relevant to ask “why” is the risk higher and “how” can it be prevented. For many years registers about the number of accidents in the fleet have been kept very well. Annual reports of the injury statistics are not essential research work, but as a part of normal administrative daily practice we need to do this in valid methods and this comes from research.

On the other hand, if we want to compare statistics between different countries, then we need comparable data and in then we call assistance from epidemiological researchers. So in this case the researchers´ task is to specify the type of data that is needed to ensure valid data. And the researchers can help by assessing properly which types of remedies do have an effect to solve the problems. The question whether research is relevant for the maritime area can be answered by saying yes, because the maritime industry is interested to perform high quality products and highest level of health and safety. And as a high quality of safety and health is only possibly by continuously asking questions about risk which can only be answered properly by research, then research in health and safety is of high importance for the whole maritime industry.