Dr. Peter Smith
Dr. Peter Smith is president and senior scientist at the Institute for Work & Health (IWH) in Toronto, and a professor in the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto. Prior to moving into the president's role in January 2022, Smith was IWH's scientific co-director.
Smith has a master's in public health from the University of New South Wales, Australia, and a PhD from the Institute of Medical Science at the University of Toronto. He is a former recipient of a New Investigator Award (2008-2013) from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR),a Discovery Early Career Researcher Award from the Australian Research Council (2012-2014), and a five-year CIHR Research Chair in Gender, Work and Health (2014-2018).
Smith has extensive experience conducting research related to work injury and its consequences using large population-based surveys and administrative workers' compensation data. His key research interests include: gender and sex differences in the relationship between work and health; labour market inequalities and their health-related outcomes; labour market experiences of newcomers, older workers, younger workers and other vulnerable labour force subgroups; chronic illnesses and work injury; and trends in working conditions over time.
“I don’t understand how people can think about health without thinking about work. Between our early 20s and our 60s – and later for some people – we spend most of our waking hours at work. It makes sense, then, that aspects of work must have an impact on different aspects of our health, both positively and negatively. That drives me to better understand what good work and bad work look like from a health and return-to-work perspective.” – Dr. Peter Smith
Projects
- Exploring the relationship between prolonged standing and prolonged sitting at work and heart disease among male and female workers. Completed. (PI on the project)
- Incidence of work-related aggression and violence in Canada. Funded by Ontario Ministry of Labour. Completed. (PI on the project)
- Developing a framework for understanding and measuring OHS vulnerability. Funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Completed. (PI on the project)
- Ontario Leading Indicators Project. Completed.
- Evaluating the implementation and effectiveness of Ontario’s working-at-heights training standard. Funded by Ontario Ministry of Labour. Completed.
Publications
- Mustard C, Smith PM, Landsman V. Improving information on worker health protection in Ontario. Institute for Work & Health; 2021.
- LaMontagne AD, Martin AJ, Page KM, Papas A, Reavley NJ, Noblet AJ, Milner AJ, Keegel T, Allisey A, Witt K, Smith PM. A cluster RCT to improve workplace mental health in a policing context: findings of a mixed-methods implementation evaluation. American Journal of Industrial Medicine. 2021;64(4):283-295. doi:10.1002/ajim.23217.
- Smith PM, Oudyk J, Potter G, Mustard C. Labour market attachment, workplace infection control procedures and mental health: a cross-sectional survey of Canadian non-healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Annals of Work Exposures and Health. 2021;65(3):266-276. doi:10.1093/annweh/wxaa119.
- Orchard C, Carnide N, Smith PM, Mustard C. The association between case manager interactions and serious mental illness following a physical workplace injury or illness: a cross-sectional analysis of workers' compensation claimants Ontario. Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation. 2021;31(4):895-902. doi:10.1007/s10926-021-09974-7.
- Jessiman-Perreault G, Smith PM, Gignac MA. Why are workplace social support programs not improving the mental health of Canadian correctional officers? An examination of the theoretical concepts underpinning support. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021;18(5):2665. doi:10.3390/ijerph18052665.
Speaker Series presentations
- Examining gender/sex differences in work injury risk, consequences of work injury and the relationship between work stress and chronic disease. IWH Speaker Series. October 14, 2014.
- The impact of job strain on the risk of depression. IWH Speaker Series. October 25, 2011.
- Examining changes in injuries submitted as no-lost-time claims in Ontario between 1991 and 2006. IWH Speaker Series. October 12, 2010.
- Examining trends in no-lost-time claims in Ontario, 1991-2006. IWH Speaker Series. March 31, 2009.
- An examination of the working conditions and risk factors for work-related injuries among immigrant workers in Ontario. IWH Speaker Series. February 3, 2009.
Interviews and articles
- Supportive supervisors help reduce risks when workers face hazards, lack protection . At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 95, Winter 2019.
- Women four times more likely to experience sexual assault at work. The Conversation. January 22, 2019. Available from: https://theconversation.com/women-four-times-more-likely-to-experience-sexual-assault-at-work-108380
- Sitting or standing too much at work? New video addresses ways to lower associated health risks. Safety + Health. December 27, 2018. Available from: https://www.safetyandhealthmagazine.com/articles/17906-sitting-or-standing-too-much-at-work-new-video-addresses-ways-to-lower-associated-health-risks
- Developing a new screening tool of psychosocial hazards . At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 94, Fall 2018.
- Slight improvements seen in workplace psychosocial conditions over 10 years. At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 94, Fall 2018.