Past events
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IWH Speaker Series
Occupational exposure to ultraviolet radiation: Current knowledge and future challenges
Thomas Tenkate, Ryerson University
As virtually everyone is exposed to the sun on a daily basis, ultraviolet (UV) radiation is an important environmental health hazard. Additionally, there are many occupations that receive substantial exposures to either natural UV or UV from artificial sources. Even though the adverse effects of UV exposure have been well known for some time, there is still much that we don't know about occupational UV exposure. In the occupational setting, managing the risk of occupational UV exposure is particularly challenging. This plenary will discuss the current state of knowledge and some key risk management challenges relating to occupational exposure to UV.
IWH Speaker Series
Implementing a global ergonomics program and metric system at Magna International Inc.
Gary Au, Magna International
The topic of this plenary is the new metric system and set of ergonomics criteria launched across 120 North American plants in 2007 and another 136 plants later in Europe and Asia. The new structure ensured a more systematic and robust method for identifying and reducing ergonomic risk in all plants. A central database increased the ease of sharing information. In 2011, Magna received the Ergonomic Innovation Award from the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA) for the this newly developed database system.
IWH Speaker Series
Measuring workplace psychological health and safety
John Oudyk, Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers Inc.
How do you measure stress in the workplace? For the last two years, a working group of health, safety and compensation representatives, the Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers (OHCOW) and academic researchers have evaluated a strategy to measure psychosocial risk factors in the workplace. Using the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire (COPSOQ), the working group piloted the survey at several conferences and workplaces. In this plenary, John Oudyk, an occupational hygienist at OHCOW, reports on the findings from these surveys and demonstrates the working group’s tool kit.
IWH Speaker Series
Developing a consensus statement on the use of research evidence in injury compensation systems
Alex Collie, Institute for Safety, Compensation and Recovery Research
A key goal of compensation research is to improve policy and practice within injury compensation systems, but realizing the benefits of evidence-informed policy and practice requires a shift in thinking and practice. In this plenary, Dr. Alex Collie describes the development of a consensus statement in Australia and New Zealand regarding the use of research evidence in personal injury compensation policy and practice. The statement identifies eight major factors affecting the uptake of research evidence and six opportunities to improve uptake.
IWH Speaker Series
Towards a transformative view of evaluation
Sanjeev Sridharan, St. Michael's Hospital
Current trends in evaluation and the steps by which evaluation can matter for public health are two key topics in this plenary. Based on ongoing evaluations and evaluation capacity projects in a number of settings, Dr. Sridharan, director of the Evaluation Centre for Complex Health Interventions at St. Michael’s Hospital, explores conditions under which evaluation can make a difference.
IWH Speaker Series
New models for occupational cancer surveillance in Canada
Paul Demers, Occupational Cancer Research Centre
There are 60 well-established workplace carcinogens identified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. But there are over 100 industrial chemicals (and other agents) that are suspected to cause cancer. Canada lacks any rapid, low-cost means to assess whether exposures, occupations or industries pose an increased risk. In this plenary, the director of the Occupational Cancer Research Centre shares two projects currently being undertaken to establish alternative models for occupational cancer surveillance in this country. If successful, these projects will create two, alternative platforms for the surveillance of occupational cancer in Canada.
IWH Speaker Series
The management of OHS and return-to-work issues in temporary work agencies
Ellen MacEachen, Institute for Work & Health
Temporary work agencies are a growing phenomenon and an increasingly established part of new flexible labour markets. Studies have shown that agency workers are at greater risk for occupational accidents and diseases than permanent workers. However, little is known about the management of injury prevention and return to work within temporary work agency contexts. In this presentation, Dr. Ellen MacEachen talks about the findings from an IWH study on the organization of health and safety in temporary work agencies.
IWH Speaker Series
Supporting employees dealing with chronic diseases: Emerging issues among workers with arthritis
Monique Gignac, Toronto Western Research Institute
Individuals with chronic physically disabling illnesses experience a number of challenges when working.This plenary discusses three separate studies of individuals with inflammatory arthritis and osteoarthritis, and highlights the episodic nature of many chronic conditions like arthritis, the work-health balance and perceived “job lock” (that is, being trapped in a job because of one’s health).Those reporting "job lock" were more likely to report absenteeism related to their disease, job disruptions and lower productivity. These findings are discussed, along with the need for workplace interventions to target work-related and psychosocial issues that could facilitate or undermine employment.
IWH Speaker Series
Is safe production an oxymoron?
Mark Pagell, York University
Both safety and operations scholars conduct research on safety practices and outcomes, and yet they sometimes reach different conclusions about the relationship between creating a safe workplace and creating a productive workplace. This plenary discusses research that examined safety practices and outcomes in the wider context of business operations.The goal was to enhance the understanding of the practices critical for safe workplaces, and the business value (positive or negative) of safety. The results provide new and novel insights.
IWH Speaker Series
Reflecting on a program of participatory ergonomics interventions: A multiple case study
Richard Wells, University of Waterloo
To date, evaluations of participative ergonomics (PE) interventions have shown mixed results. In a multiple case study of four worksites in different companies, Dr. Wells' team examined process, implementation and effects of PE interventions. This study was based on fieldwork and interviews with 90 people. The team was able to introduce 10 to 21 changes over 10 to 20 months, despite some challenges. This plenary describes the research, which ultimately showed limited effects of PE interventions, and potential reasons that may account for this.
IWH Speaker Series
Health and wellness of southern Ontario truck drivers
Transportation workers are more susceptible to chronic disease as a result of higher prevalence of selected risk factors, working conditions and certain lifestyle choices. Researchers conducted focus groups with drivers and trucking-firm managers to inform the development of health and wellness surveys administered to drivers in 13 transport companies in 2011. This plenary describes results of the focus groups and surveys, and outlines ongoing initiatives and collaborative directions that have come about from stakeholder strategic planning meetings. This research was jointly undertaken by McMaster University and the City of Hamilton’s Public Health Services.
IWH Speaker Series
Repeat workers’ compensation claims
Jacob Etches, Institute for Work & Health
When examining workers’ compensation claims data, it is usually assumed that each claim represents an independent event. However, claimants often file repeatedly. Little is known about repeat claimants. This plenary discusses research into repeat claimants in several provinces.
IWH Speaker Series
Pictograms development and evaluation project
Trevor King, Institute for Work & Health; Kim Grant, Workplace Safety & Prevention Services
This plenary outlines a collaborative effort between Workplace Safety and Prevention Services (WSPS), one of Ontario's health and safety associations, and the Institute for Work & Health (IWH) to develop a pictogram-based hazard identification system. The organizations worked together to develop and evaluate pictograms (i.e. visual symbols) and a corresponding training program for kitchen prep workers in restaurants across Ontario. The plenary details the pictogram and training development process and the following pilot study evaluation.
IWH Speaker Series
Plastics and breast cancer: A lens on women working in the auto sector
Anne Rochon Ford, Canadian Women's Health Network
Anne Rochon Ford is leading the project "Women, Plastics and Breast Cancer National Network on Environments and Women's Health" at York University. In this plenary, she presents a 'snapshot' of recent studies that give rise to emerging health concerns for women workers in the auto sector, specifically plastics manufacturing. In particular, there are strong reasons to believe that there may be an elevated incidence of breast cancer and reproductive problems in women plastics workers. For the over 25,000 women plastics workers in the auto industry in southwestern Ontario, the stakes are high.
IWH Speaker Series
Race, poverty and precariousness: Understanding the racialization of poverty in Canada
Grace-Edward Galabuzi, Ryerson University
In this presentation, Dr. Grace-Edward Galabuzi examines major trends in the labour market in the last 25 years, chief among them the growing gap between workers and the managerial/professional class. This gap is increasingly racialized. This is manifest in the analysis of income and employment data of racialized/immigrant and non-racialized/Canadian-born cohorts. Dr. Galabuzi discusses the impact on key aspects of life experience, such as disproportionate exposure to low income, differential health status and residential segregation. This comes at a time when racialized group members are projected to become a third of the Canadian population over the next 20 years.
IWH Speaker Series
The impact of job strain on the risk of depression
Peter Smith, Institute for Work & Health
In this presentation, Dr. Peter Smith discusses a recent project that considered the impact of changes in job strain on the risk of depression. More specifically, this research assessed the impact of changes in dimensions of the psychosocial work environment – job control, psychological demands, job strain and social support – on the risk of depression in a longitudinal cohort of 3,735 Canadians. Results of this analysis are presented and discussed in this plenary.
IWH Speaker Series
Work injury risk by time of day in Ontario
Cameron Mustard, Institute for Work & Health; Andrea Chambers, Institute for Work & Health
In this presentation, Cam Mustard and Andrea Chambers provide a summary of the preliminary findings of a study that examined the incidence of work-related injury and illness in the Ontario labour force across the 24-hour clock. They also review the study methods. Two data sources were used (WSIB lost-time claims and records of non-scheduled visits to Ontario emergency departments), while information on hours worked was obtained from Statistics Canada sources.
IWH Speaker Series
Regulatory action against bullying and harassment in the workplace in an international perspective: From research to policy
Katherine Lippel, University of Ottawa
The presentation explores various strategies in the development and implementation of regulation to address workplace bullying and harassment in developed and developing countries, while identifying strengths and weaknesses of the different approaches. The analysis includes reflections on the relationship between research and regulation and provides illustrations drawn from studies on occupational violence, gender issues and precarious employment.
IWH Speaker Series
An economic evaluation of distance lifestyle counselling among overweight employees
Marieke van Wier, VU University Amsterdam
Marieke van Wier, a researcher in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the Institute for Health and Care Research at the VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam, discusses a study that compared the cost-effectiveness of three different forms of distance lifestyle counselling for overweight workers. An economic evaluation was conducted alongside a three-arm randomized controlled trial that compared the effectiveness of a six-month counselling program offered through self-help brochures, phone intervention or internet intervention, with a two-year time horizon. The internet intervention was found to be more effective for weight loss than self-help brochures alone, and at relatively the same cost. The phone intervention was not cost-effective compared with self-help brochures.
IWH Speaker Series
Developing an Ontario strategy to prevent MSDs due to manual materials handling: Lessons learned from Australia
Jean Mangharam, WorkSafe, Western Australia
The Centre of Research Expertise for the Prevention of Musculoskeletal Disorders (CRE-MSD) is holding a discussion forum on Monday, June 27 on the development of an Ontario manual materials handling (MMH) program to prevent musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). The forum is being organized in response to Ontario’s focus on high-impact claims and CRE-MSD's wish to be involved in the next version of Ontario's MSD strategy. The forum will include speakers from British Columbia, United States, United Kingdom and Australia, who will talk about efforts in their own jurisdictiosn to protect workers from injury related to MMH. Jean Mangharam, principal scientific officer/inspector of the Human Factors & Ergonomics Team at WorkSafe in Western Australia, is one of the speakers at the CRE-MSD discussion forum. At this plenary, which takes place the day after the forum, she will talk about Western Australia's experiences with the design, dissemination, workplace implementation and evaluation of a guidance on MMH, and the responses it received from workplace parties during the process. She will also give her impressions of the discussion forum and describe how the Australian experience can relate to the development of an Ontario strategy to prevent MSDs due to MMH.