Social Burden and Economic Cost Estimation of Fatal Injuries in Workers Affiliated to Social Security in Ecuador: a Shared Challenge in Public and Occupational Health

Estimación de la carga social y el costo económico de las lesiones mortales en trabajadores afiliados a la seguridad social en Ecuador: un desafío compartido en salud pública y ocupacional

Published 2025-04-11

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Vol. 7 No. 2 (2025)
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Research Article
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Gómez-García AR, Tsao Wu CH, Ruiz Barzola EN, Hacay Chang A. Social Burden and Economic Cost Estimation of Fatal Injuries in Workers Affiliated to Social Security in Ecuador: a Shared Challenge in Public and Occupational Health. Rev. Investig. Innov. Cienc. Salud [Internet]. 2025 Apr. 11 [cited 2025 Apr. 23];7(2). Available from: https://riics.info/index.php/RCMC/article/view/390
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https://doi.org/10.46634/riics.390
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Antonio Ramón Gómez-García
Observatorio Ecuatoriano de Seguridad y Salud en el Trabajo
Roles:  
Perfil Google Scholar
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1015-1753
Chen Han Tsao Wu
Universidad de Especialidades Espíritu Santo image/svg+xml
Roles:  
https://orcid.org/0009-0001-8184-8796
Evelyn Nathaly Ruiz Barzola
Universidad de Especialidades Espíritu Santo image/svg+xml
Roles:  
https://orcid.org/0009-0009-8036-5192
Alywin Hacay Chang
Observatorio Ecuatoriano de Seguridad y Salud en el Trabajo
Roles:  
Perfil Google Scholar
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5383-0951
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Antonio Ramón Gómez-García,

1 Observatorio Ecuatoriano de Seguridad y Salud en el Trabajo; Guayaquil; Ecuador.

2 Universidad Espíritu Santo; Guayaquil; Ecuador.

Chen Han Tsao Wu,

Universidad Espíritu Santo; Guayaquil; Ecuador

Evelyn Nathaly Ruiz Barzola,

Universidad Espíritu Santo; Guayaquil; Ecuador.

Alywin Hacay Chang,

1 Observatorio Ecuatoriano de Seguridad y Salud en el Trabajo; Guayaquil; Ecuador.

2 Universidad Espíritu Santo; Guayaquil; Ecuador.

Introduction. Currently, there is limited knowledge on quantifying the labour and monetary losses due to work-related fatalities in developing countries.

Objective. To estimate the working years of potential life lost (WYPLLs) and economic losses (ELs) of workers affiliated to the social security system in Ecuador from 2014 to 2020.

Methodology. Administrative records of fatal injuries were provided by the General Insurance of Occupational Risks and data regarding workers and their wages were retrieved from the Statistical Employment Registry of Social Security. WYPLLs and ELs were calculated together to assess the impact on gross domestic product (%GDP) according to the place where the fatal accident occurred in men and women by age groups.

Results. During the study period, 123,121 accidents were recorded, of which 1,532 resulted in deaths (15-64 years). Consequently, 40,409 WYPLL were lost in the labor market, equivalent to 40.4 years per 1,000 workers. The ELs from premature worker deaths totaled 323.7 million USD, reducing GDP by –0.045%, with CFi exceeding WFi post-2016.

Conclusions. Policy adjustments should enhance occupational safety and address work-related travel fatalities, considering Ecuador's road safety challenges.

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