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
- How RTW differs for workers with psychological injuries, older workers. Funded by Australian Research Council. Completed. (PI on the project)
- Inter-jurisdictional comparison of OHS and workers’ compensation system performance. Funded by Manitoba Workers Compensation Board. Completed.
- Role of employers and settlement agencies in safe employment integration. Completed. (PI on the project)
- Measuring occupational health and safety vulnerability in Alberta . Funded by OHS Futures Alberta. Completed. (PI on the project)
- Understanding the employment needs and experiences of baby boomers with arthritis and diabetes. Funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Completed.
Publications
- Macpherson RA, Amick B, Collie A, Hogg-Johnson S, Koehoorn M, Smith PM, McLeod CB. Urban-rural differences in the duration of injury-related work disability in six Canadian provinces. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. 2020;62(5):e200-e207. doi:10.1097/JOM.0000000000001850.
- Orchard C, Carnide N, Smith PM. How does perceived fairness in the workers' compensation claims process affect mental health following a workplace injury?. Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation. 2020;30(1):40-48. doi:10.1007/s10926-019-09844-3.
- Tait CA, L'Abbe MR, Smith PM, Watson T, Kornas K, Rosella LC. Adherence to predefined dietary patterns and risk of developing type 2 diabetes in the Canadian adult population. Canadian Journal of Diabetes. 2020;44(2):175-183. doi:10.1016/j.jcjd.2019.06.002.
- Biswas A, Smith PM, Gignac MA. Access to showers and change rooms at work associated with active commuting among older workers: findings from a national population survey. Journal of Applied Gerontology. 2020;39(2):214-220. doi:10.1177/0733464818755313.
- Biswas A, Dobson KG , Gignac MA, de Oliveira C, Smith PM. Changes in work factors and concurrent changes in leisure time physical activity: a 12-year longitudinal analysis. Occupational and Environmental Medicine. 2020;77(5):309-315. doi:10.1136/oemed-2019-106158.
Speaker Series presentations
- Refining estimates of occupational exposures and risk of workplace COVID-19 transmission. IWH Speaker Series. January 16, 2024.
- Building on the past, looking to the future: Presenting the IWH Strategic Plan, 2023-27. IWH Speaker Series. May 23, 2023.
- Workplace COVID-19 protections and transmission: Findings from population-level data in Canada. IWH Speaker Series. October 19, 2021.
- Differences in the return-to-work process for work-related psychological and musculoskeletal conditions: findings from an Australian cohort. IWH Speaker Series. April 6, 2021.
- More than just COVID-19 prevention: Exploring the links between PPE, safe work protocols and workers' mental health. IWH Speaker Series. November 10, 2020.
Interviews and articles
- Lancet series calls for greater attention to work as social determinant of health. At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 114, Fall 2023.
- The impact of work on well-being: 6 factors that will affect the future of work and health inequalities. The Conversation Canada. October 15, 2023. Available from: https://theconversation.com/the-impact-of-work-on-well-being-6-factors-that-will-affect-the-future-of-work-and-health-inequalities-215047
- IWH tool comes out ahead in Australian study of OHS leading indicator tools. At Work: Institute for Work & Health; No. 111, Winter 2023.
- Educators lack protection in-class and support online, studies find. Workers Health & Safety Centre. November 17, 2022. Available from: https://www.whsc.on.ca/What-s-new/News-Archive/Educators-lack-protection-in-class-and-support-online-studies-find
- They made doors, gum and jerry cans. Ontario’s ‘essential’ workers in manufacturing accounted for more workplace COVID deaths than any other sector — even health care. Toronto Star. October 27, 2022. Available from: https://www.thestar.com/news/investigations/2022/10/27/they-made-tile-gum-and-jerry-cans-ontarios-essential-workers-in-manufacturing-accounted-for-more-workplace-covid-deaths-than-any-other-sector-even-health-care.html