Staff ~ Scientists

Dr. Chris McLeod

Scientist
PhD, University of British Columbia
Staff email
chris.mcleod@ubc.ca
Staff phone
604–822–0348

Dr. Chris McLeod is a scientist at the Institute for Work & Health and is the co-research lead of the Partnership for Work, Health and Safety at the School of Population and Public Health at the University of British Columbia (UBC) in Vancouver, where he is an associate professor. He is also the Canadian research lead of the Canadian-Australian research collaboration with the Institute for Safety, Compensation and Recovery Research (ISCRR) in Melbourne, Australia.

McLeod holds a PhD in population and public health from UBC and a master's in economics from McMaster University. He is the recipient of a five-year (2013-2018) CIHR New Investigator Award and of a five-year (2016-2021) Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research Scholar Award

McLeod’s research focuses on the program and policy evaluation of occupational health policies and practices, and on the causes and consequences of work-related injury and disease. He is also a content data expert for Population Data BC, working on developing and extending the occupational health data available to researchers through Population Data BC.

Photo of Chris McLeod

"Because the Institute for Work & Health supported me in a variety of ways, I decided to pursue a career as a researcher in work and health. That wouldn't have happened without the Institute introducing me to the field and maintaining an ongoing supportive relationship." –  Dr. Chris McLeod

Research areas

Overhead view of male cleaner pushing industrial floor polisher along long red walkway
OHS regulation and enforcement
Office workers are seen from afar through office windows
Compensation and benefit policy

Projects

Central nervous system agents and the risk of workplace injury and death: a systematic review. Funded by WorkSafeBC. Ongoing.
Identifying relevant OHS leading indicators in Manitoba's construction sector. Funded by Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba. Ongoing.
Inter-jurisdictional comparison of OHS and workers’ compensation system performance. Funded by Manitoba Workers Compensation Board. Ongoing.
Strengthening disability management in Ontario’s municipal sector. Funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research and Social Sciences Humanities Research Council Signature Initiative. Ongoing.

Publications

Macpherson RA, Koehoorn M, Fan J, Quirke W, Amick B, Kraut A, Mustard C, McLeod CB. Do differences in work disability duration between men and women vary by province in Canada?. Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation. 2018 [Epub ahead of print]. doi:10.1007/s10926-018-9819-1.
Fan JK, Amick B, Richardson L, Scott-Marshall H, McLeod CB. Labor market and health trajectories during periods of economic recession and expansion in the United States, 1988‒2011. Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health. 2018 [Epub ahead of print]. doi:10.5271/sjweh.3743.
Macpherson RA, Lane TJ, Collie A, McLeod CB. Age, sex, and the changing disability burden of compensated work-related musculoskeletal disorders in Canada and Australia. BMC Public Health. 2018;18(1):758. doi:10.1186/s12889-018-5590-7.
McLeod CB, Reiff E, Maas E, Bultmann U. Identifying return-to-work trajectories using sequence analysis in a cohort of workers with work-related musculoskeletal disorders. Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health. 2018;44(2):147-155. doi:10.5271/sjweh.3701.
Tompa E, Kalcevich C, McLeod CB, Lebeau M, Song C, McLeod K, Kim J, Demers PA. The economic burden of lung cancer and mesothelioma due to occupational and para-occupational asbestos exposure. Occupational and Environmental Medicine. 2017;74(11):816-822. doi:10.1136/oemed-2016-104173.

Presentations

Return to work not a single event: applying new methods and data to understand RTW. IWH Speaker Series. November 15, 2016.

Interviews and articles

Can data help prevent workplace injuries and death?. Journal of Commerce: ConstructConnect (Burnaby, BC). January 29, 2018. Available from: https://canada.constructconnect.com/joc/news/technology/2018/01/can-data-help-prevent-workplace-injuries-death
Study finds COR employers have lower rates of serious injuries than those not in program. At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 84, Spring 2016.
IWH eight-item questionnaire may predict future claims rates. At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 77, Summer 2014.
Are those who work shifts more at risk of work injury?. At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 63, Winter 2011.